Burma

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance the Government are providing to projects promoting human rights and democracy in Burma.

Gareth Thomas: DFID provides significant support to projects to help the people of Burma access their human rights and build the foundations for sustainable democracy. Our programme includes a wide variety of activities, such as capacity-building for local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), training for journalists, work to involve poor people in decision-making about issues that affect them, and support for the empowerment of poor women. In addition, the British embassy in Rangoon is carrying out extremely valuable work to build local capacity.
	DFID is about to start work on the implementation of a £3.0 million programme designed to expandand strengthen DFID's work to support increased prospects for a successful transition to democracy and respect for human rights in Burma. The programme will increase opportunities for Burma's people to engage in political decision-making processes at the local level affecting their welfare, livelihoods and governance.

Departments: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of Statefor International Development how many grievance procedures have been initiated in his Department in the last 12 months.

Gareth Thomas: DFID's grievance procedure is fully compliant with UK legislation and applies to civil servants working in the UK and overseas. We also apply it, unless local law dictates otherwise, to staff appointed in country (SAIC) who work under local contracts. In the last year, 13 grievance procedures were initiated in DFID, as set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Number 
			 Number of cases 13 
			 Number upheld 3 
			 Not upheld 8 
			 Cases currently underway 2 
			 Appeals 2 
			 Appeals upheld 0

Departments: Renewable Energy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much energy in kilowatt hours was purchased by his Department from renewable sources in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Gareth Thomas: DFID is committed to meeting the new sustainable operations on the Government Estate targets including the mandatory requirement to source at least 10 per cent. of energy from renewable sources.
	During 2006-07 DFID consumed 6,991,124 kilowatt hours of electricity; approximately 95 per cent. of which was from renewable sources. From the startof 2007 the proportion from renewable sources is100 per cent.

Climate Change

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy that, at the forthcoming Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change In Bangkok, temperature data be made available as part of the summary for policy makers; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  why temperature data over the last 10,000 years were excluded from the Final Draft International Panel on Climate Change Summary for Policy Makers.

Ian Pearson: holding answer 1 May 2007
	The forthcoming meetings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in Bangkok will comprise the ninth session of IPCC Working Group III and the 26th( )session of the IPCC. The first meeting will accept the Working Group III contribution to the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) and approve its Summary for Policymakers (SPM). The second meeting will accept the actions by the sessions of IPCC Working Groups I, II and III, review the IPCC terms of reference and discuss future work.
	The reports of the IPCC are written by hundreds of scientists from across the world and provide an assessment of peer-reviewed scientific and technical literature on climate change. The IPCC does not carry out new research. As such, all the data contained within the IPCC's reports are already available in published literature and are independent of Government.
	The SPM summarises the findings of the underlying report. The SPM is drafted by scientists and agreed by all Governments at the IPCC plenaries. The agreement of the SPM helps to communicate the IPCC outputs to Governments. No one government, organisation or individual has sole responsibility for any part of the report.

Sewage: Renewable Energy

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research he has  (a) commissioned and  (b) supported into energy production through (i) fermentation, (ii) microbrial fuel cells, (iii) anaerobic digestion, (iv) gasification and (v) pyrolysis of sewage.

Ian Pearson: My Department has not commissioned or supported any research into these methods of energy production, as they are well established and successful technologies.

Water Charges

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the  (a) standing charges,  (b) cost per litre and  (c) other charges levied by each water company in England and Wales are on individual households (i) with and (ii) without water meters.

Ian Pearson: Ofwat is the economic regulator of the water and sewerage industry in England and Wales. It approves companies' charges schemes each year and provides detailed information in its water and sewerage charges report. Ofwat will publish its 2007-08 report on 16 May.
	The volumetric rate for metered customers is calculated on the basis of cost per cubic meter. The following tables summarise the charges that are levied by water companies for 2007-08 on households both with and without water meters.
	
		
			  Unmetered water and sewerage tariffs for household customers 2007-08 
			   Fixed water charge (£/year)  Rateable value water charge (p/£RV)  Average water bill in 2007-08 (£)  Fixed sewerage charge (£/year)  Rateable value sewerage charge (p/£RV)  Average sewerage bill in 2007-08 (£) 
			  Water and sewerage companies   
			 Anglian: — — 189 141.89 45.01 228 
			 Anglian 118.93 42.05 — — — — 
			 Hartlepool 116.81 — — — — — 
			 Dwr Cymru 106.27 60.56 171 135.42 82.56 230 
			
			 Northumbrian: — — — 95.40 46.35 163 
			
			 North East 68.40 41.23 129 — — — 
			
			 Essex and Suffolk: 39.00 — 180 — — — 
			 Essex — 57.92 — — — — 
			 Suffolk — 101.79 — — — — 
			
			 Severn Trent: — — 145 — — 139 
			 Zone 1 — 85.47 — — 80.15 — 
			 Zone 2 — 76.92 — — 67.50 — 
			 Zone 3 — 74.59 — — 71.12 — 
			 Zone 4 — 77.93 — — 77.11 — 
			 Zone 5 — 89.60 — — 89.97 — 
			 Zone 6 — 93.20 — — 87.13 — 
			 Zone 7 — 93.84 — — 84.91 — 
			 Zone 8 — 74.59 — — 70.62 — 
			
			 South West 93.50 99.12 242 82.50 223.58 408 
			
			 Southern 29.54 48.00 121 56.28 89.60 228 
			 Thames: 25.00 — 172 32.00 — 109 
			
			 Area 1 — 58.34 — — 30.65 — 
			 Area 2 — 59.39 — — 31.77 — 
			 Area 3 — 44.64 — — 19.95 — 
			 Area 4 — 53.45 — — 28.65 — 
			 Area 5 — 68.66 — — 37.55 — 
			 Area 6 — 59.55 — — 31.07 — 
			 Area 7 — 81.81 — — 43.67 — 
			
			 United Utilities 47.00 68.60 156 — 114.50 185 
			
			 Wessex 7.00 113.34 201 7.00 108.56 198 
			
			 Yorkshire: — — 151 35.81 104.00 168 
			 Yorkshire 31.87 95.70 — — — — 
			 York 25.01 54.50 — — — — 
			
			  Water only companies   
			 Bournemouth and W Hampshire 21.50 60.64 147 — — — 
			
			 Bristol 22.00 69.30 148 — — — 
			
			 Cambridge 23.40 45.00 123 — — — 
			
			 Cholderton 36.00 68.06 180 — — — 
			
			 Dee Valley: — — 131 — — — 
			 Chester 30.32 45.03 — — — — 
			 Wrexham 76.84 48.08 — — — — 
			
			 Folkestone and Dover 43.00 93.82 199 — — — 
			
			 Mid Kent 51.00 65.09 170 — — — 
			
			 Portsmouth 20.00 31.10 85 — — — 
			
			 South East: 20.00 — 179 — — — 
			
			 Eastbourne — 90.66 — — — — 
			 Mid Southern — 52.47 — — — — 
			 Mid-Sussex — 96.50 — — — — 
			 West Kent — 84.50 — — — — 
			
			 South Staffordshire — 55.36 115 — — — 
			
			 Sutton and East Surrey: — — 168 — — — 
			
			 Croydon 37.00 35.75 — — — — 
			
			 Northern Area 144.14 — — — — — 
			
			 Southern Area 37.00 60.72 — — — — 
			
			 Tendring Hundred 33.00 86.32 194 — — — 
			 Three Valleys — — 158 — — — 
			 Three Valleys 34.20 — — — — — 
			 Colne Valley — 43.44 — — — — 
			 Lee Valley — 53.35 — — — — 
			
			 Rickmansworth — 42.34 — — — — 
			
			 North Surrey 34.20 44.61 — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			  Metered water and sewerage tariffs for household customers 2007-08 
			   Standing water charge (£/year)  Volumetric water charge (p/m3)  Average water bill in 2007-08  Standing sewerage charge (£year)  Volumetric sewerage charge (p/m3)  Average sewerage bill in 2007-08 
			 Anglian — — 132 — — 167 
			
			 Anglian Standard 24.00 115.14 — 67.00 112.04 — 
			
			 SoLow 0.00 147.14 — 0.00 201.38 — 
			
			 Aquacare Plus 64.00 61.80 — 111 .00 53.38 — 
			
			 Hartlepool Standard 24.00 82.09 — — — — 
			
			 SoLow 0.00 114.09 — — — — 
			
			 Aquacare Plus 50.00 47.42 — — — — 
			
			 Dwr Cymru 29.00 122.60 113 65.00 131.30 156 
			
			 Northumbrian 28.80 — — 64.20 81.61 139 
			 North East — 85.39 110 — — — 
			
			 Essex and Suffolk — — 132 — — — 
			 Essex — 93.64 — — — — 
			 Suffolk — 127.31 — — — — 
			
			 Severn Trent 20.95 115.07 134 11.05 78.99 135 
			
			 South West 27.60 145.03 160 12.12 256.02 218 
			
			 Southern 26.44 81.80 112 47.30 128.95 179 
			
			 Thames 24.00 99.18 146 43.00 48.57 108 
			
			 United Utilities 27.00 121.80 148 77.00 96.50 169 
			
			 Wessex 17.00 148.25 153 36.00 133.96 162 
			
			 Yorkshire — — 125 35.81 111.25 137 
			 Yorkshire 25.84 109.20 — — — — 
			 York 22.79 61.10 — — — — 
			  Water only companies   
			 Bournemouth and W Hampshire 21.50 93.79 121  — — 
			
			 Bristol 30.00 98.22 126 — — — 
			
			 Cambridge 25.50 75.50 102 — — — 
			
			 Cholderton 25.00 112.51 116 — — — 
			
			 Dee Valley 24.00 — 101 — — — 
			 Chester — 78.08 — — — — 
			 Wrexham — 84.52 — — — — 
			 Folkestone and Dover 27.68 122.88 148 — — — 
			
			 Mid Kent — — 131 — — — 
			 Standard 23.40 95.07 — — — — 
			 Low User 0.00 126.27 — — — — 
			 Helpu/Medico 57.54 61.22 — — — — 
			
			 Portsmouth 24.00 57.50 87 — — — 
			
			 South East 16.12 — 144 — — — 
			 Eastbourne — 140.60 — — — — 
			 Mid Southern — 79.96 — — — — 
			 Mid-Sussex — 146.93 — — — — 
			 West Kent — 117.43 — — — — 
			
			 South Staffordshire 25.34 78.08 107 — — — 
			
			 Sutton and East Surrey 24.20 — 122 — — — 
			 Northern Area — 79.20 — — — — 
			 Southern Area — 102.65 — — — — 
			
			 Tendring Hundred 23.40 145.79 145 — — — 
			
			 Three Valleys 26.00 84.41 135 — — —

Out-patient Departure Closures

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the Welsh Assembly Government on cross-border issues relating to the closures of out-patient departments.

Nick Ainger: I regularly meet with the Assembly Minister for Health and Social Services to discuss a range of issues, including cross border issues.

Health Services

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on cross-border issues affecting health services in Wales.

Nick Ainger: I regularly meet with the Assembly Minister for Health and Social Service when we discuss a range of issues, including cross border issues affecting health services in Wales.

Anglo-French Battle Groups

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the status is of the proposed UK/French/German Battle Group referred to in the answer of27 February 2004,  Official Report, column 614W, on Anglo-French battle groups; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: There are no plans to form a UK/French/German Battle Group, nor have there been in the past.
	The UK, France and Germany have however been instrumental in developing the EU Battlegroup concept, which achieved Full Operational Capability in January 2007. EU Battlegroups are small, mobile self-sustaining forces (approximately 1,500 troops) intended for rapid intervention in a crisis, typically in response to a UN request. There are two EU Battlegroups on standby at any time. The UK provided a national Battlegroup on standby during the first half of 2005 and will do so again in 2008. With the Netherlands we have also offered an amphibious Battlegroup in 2010. Each Battlegroup will be on standby for a period of six months.

Armed Forces: Health Services

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many uniformed  (a) doctors,  (b) dentists,  (c) nurses and  (d) medical and dental support staff are employed by each armed service.

Derek Twigg: The number of uniformed doctors, dentists, nurses and medical and support staff who are employed by each single service is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Service  Medical officers (which include primary consultants, secondary consultants and GPs)  Dental officers  Nurses (not including health care assistants)  Allied Health Professionals, medical dental support staff 
			 RN 130 51 290 890 
			 Army 240 130 620 2550 
			 RAF 130 61 430 980 
			  Note: Figures over 100 are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: DMSD 
		
	
	Numbers are correct as of 1 January 2007, and include fully qualified Service personnel only.

Departments: BAE Systems

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons security passes were issued by his Department to  (a) BAE Systems chief executive Mike Turner,  (b) former BAE Systems chairmanSir Richard Evans and  (c) BAE Systems Group marketing director Mike Rouse; and if he will list for each of these individuals (i) on which date their current security pass was issued, (ii) on which date their current security pass is due to expire, (iii) to which premises they are given access with their current security pass and (iv) the dates on which any previous security passes were issued by his Department.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 20 April 2007
	In respect of MOD's main London buildings (main building, old War Office and St. George's Court) contractor security passes (valid for one year) have not been issued to any of those individuals listed in the question.
	MOD passes are issued locally at establishment, business unit, or budget area level. Details of passes issued are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departments: Complaints

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to establish  (a) a military complaints commission and  (b) an office of a military ombudsman.

Derek Twigg: The Armed Forces Act 2006 introduced a package of improvements to the service complaints process including the establishment of an independent Service Complaints Commissioner (SCC). The recruitment process for the position will begin shortly.
	In formulating changes to the complaints process, the objective was to introduce independence into the system without undermining the chain of command and its overall responsibilities for the welfare of those under command. While there are no plans to establish a military complaints commission or an office of a military ombudsman, the powers available to the SCC, combined with the other improvements, will offer Service personnel a better overall system.

Departments: Manpower

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civilian personnel are employed by his Department in the North East.

Derek Twigg: As at 1 January 2007 there were 510 (FTE) civilians employed by this department in the North East.
	Full-time equivalence (FTE) counts part-time staff by the number of hours they work as a proportion of their full-time conditioned hours.

HMS Cornwall: BBC

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence at what time and by what means the BBC crew  (a) were scheduled to leave and  (b) left HMS Cornwall on 23rd March 2007.

Des Browne: The two BBC personnel and one journalist from the  The Independent left HMS Cornwall, as planned, on the morning of 24 March. They travelled by seaboat to the USS Underwood and then by helicopter to Bahrain, also as planned.

Iran: Territorial Waters

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether all coalition personnel involved in the boarding of vessels in Iraqi waters are briefed on the rules of engagement with Iranian forces; and by whom.

Des Browne: All UK forces deployed on operations in the Operation TELIC Joint Area of Operations are briefed on the UK Rules of Engagement applicable to national and coalition operations, including those involved in the boarding of vessels in Iraqi waters. Personnel are briefed by Commanders both in-theatre and prior to deployment as part of their pre-deployment training.

Trident Submarines

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make an assessment of the evidence submitted to the Defence Select Committee in its inquiry into the future of the UK's Strategic Nuclear Deterrent by Professor Richard Garwin, on the timetable for replacement of Trident submarines.

Des Browne: The rationale for the timetable for the replacement of the Vanguard-class submarines was set out in the White Paper: The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent (Cm 6994) published on 4 December 2006. The Ministry of Defence provided further detail on the expected life of the Vanguard-class in a letter to the Defence Select Committee dated 1 February 2007, which the Committee published in Volume II of its Ninth Report of Session 2006-07(Ev 122) on 27 February 2007. I also covered this issue in detail during my evidence session with the Committee on 6 February, a transcript of which was published in the same Report (Ev 57).

Bankruptcy

Philip Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much and what proportion of the total personal consumer debt was written off as a result of the use of individual voluntary arrangements in each of the last five years.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The extent of any debt written off by means of an individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) is a matter for agreement between the debtor proposing the arrangement and the creditors whomust approve it. Such information is not held by Government.

Cuba: Sanctions

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations the Government has made to the US authorities on the impact on UK tourists and businesses of the expansion of extra-territorial financial measures against Cuba.

Ian McCartney: The European Commission has responsibility within the European Community for dealing with extraterritorial measures taken by third countries against EU member states. Council regulation EC2271/96 (the 'EU blocking Statue') was introduced by the EU in 1996 to offer protection to EU individuals and companies against certain specific extraterritorial legislation, including the US Helms/Burton Act which applies sanctions against Cuba.
	My officials are in discussion with the European Commission in relation to recent cases of US extraterritoriality in the context of UK trade with Cuba, and the commission is considering how best to take these issues forward.

Departments: Official Hospitality

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures are in place to limit the amount of money spent on alcohol for hospitality purposes by his Department.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Heads of management units are responsible for ensuring that the principles governing hospitality and rules concerning expenditure are followed in their managements units and, as is the case for all other expenditure, that an effective system is in place for dealing with claims and accounting for expenditure.
	Expenditure on alcohol at public expense is governed by the general principles of financial propriety set out in Government accounting and further guidance is set out in the Department's staff handbook.

Housing: Internet

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to ensure that  (a) existing and  (b) new housing stock has access to high speed broadband; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The information is as follows:
	 (a) While the Government believes that the delivery of higher bandwidth broadband services is best leftto the market, we are working with Ofcom andthe industry led Broadband Stakeholders Group to understand the potential barriers to further investment and how these might be addressed.
	 (b) DTI works closely with DCLG and built environment stakeholders, including English Partnerships and the Building Research Establishment, to raise awareness of the benefits and practicalities of digital connectivity. Examples of this work include the 'Data Services—Connecting to Homes' guidance for developers, currently in preparation, and the digital access provision (DAP) forum, producing best practice for digital connectivity at the earliest stages of the construction process.

Recycling

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what monitoring his Department undertakes of the eventual disposal of materials exported to China for recycling.

Ben Bradshaw: I have been asked to reply.
	There are a range of controls in place to safeguard human health and the environment from exports of waste. All exports of waste from the UK for disposal are generally prohibited. However, certain non-hazardous wastes such as paper, glass and plastic can be exported for recovery or recycling, including to China, provided the wastes are destined for genuine and environmentally sound recovery operations. Itis in the Chinese authorities' interest to ensure that imported recyclables are tracked and properly processed in an environmentally sound manner.
	It is for waste producers, including local authorities and waste management contractors, to ensure that their waste is properly managed throughout the steps in the recycling chain, including at its final destination. They should assure themselves that exported waste is in compliance with the relevant environmental legislation, including that which applies to waste exports, and the duty of care. In support of this, the Environmental Services Association in the UK recently launched a compliance scheme for exports of recyclable materials, which the Government welcome. The code of practice, which is part of the scheme, includes requirements on members of the scheme to have documented control systems to demonstrate that waste recyclables are recovered under standards broadly equivalent to EU standards.
	The Environment Agency (EA) is the competent authority in England and Wales responsible for the regulation and control of transfrontier shipments of waste. The EA has a programme of inspections ofsites exporting waste and has taken part in joint enforcement projects with other EU regulators as part of the Sea Ports Projects, which includes detailed monitoring of waste exports from the EU.
	In addition, in March 2005, DEFRA wrote to all waste collection and disposal authorities in England reminding them of their responsibilities regarding the export of waste to the EU and other countries.

Ballot Papers

Kevan Jones: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what criteria were used by the Electoral Commission to select appropriate printersfor their approved list to produce ballot papers for the local elections 2007.

Peter Viggers: Selection of a printer for the production of ballot papers is a responsibility of the relevant Returning Officer. The Electoral Commission informs me that it does not produce an approved listof printers, but its guidance manuals for Returning Officers offer advice on how to approach outsourcing of the production of ballot papers.

Ballot Papers: Derwentside

Kevan Jones: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission if he will place in the Library a copy of the advice issued to Derwentside district council by the Electoral Commission following the issuing of faulty ballot papers for the local elections 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Viggers: The Electoral Commission informs me that it has provided no such written advice. The Commission did, however, provide oral advice to Derwentside district council following the discovery of errors in the instruction sheets in the postal ballot packs for the 16 wards with multi-member vacancies. The Commission concurred with the Council's proposed response, which was to inform immediately all electors registered as postal voters in the relevant wards, and to offer a replacement ballot pack to any who considered themselves to have been confused by the error.

Local Government: Reorganisation

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what involvement the Electoral Commission had in the recent local government restructuring proposals.

Peter Viggers: The Electoral Commission informs me that it had no involvement with the Government's original invitation to local authorities to bid for unitary status, nor with the drawing up by the Government of a short-list of local authorities that it considered likely to meet the criteria. However, as with a number of other organisations, the Commission has since been consulted by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government over the shortlist.

Departments: Paper

David Simpson: To ask the Leader of the House what percentage of paper used  (a) for photocopying and  (b) in printed publications by his Office was from recycled sources in each of the last three years.

Jack Straw: In the last three years, 100 per cent. of paper used by the Leader of the House of Commons Office for photocopying has been from recycled sources.
	Paper used for printed publications complies with the Government's sustainable procurement "quick wins" agenda, which states that "coated papers must contain a minimum of 60 per cent. recycled fibreand uncoated papers 100 per cent. recycled fibre". In practice most papers used comprise at least 75 per cent. recycled fibre for coated and 100 per cent. for uncoated.

Aviation

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect of plans by the National Air Traffic Services for new holding stacks for aircraft in relation to flights from  (a) Stansted,  (b) Luton and  (c) City airport.

Gillian Merron: No definitive plans have been submitted by NATS for new holding stacks for aircraft in relation to flights from  (a) Stansted,  (b) Luton and  (c) London City airport. Plans for such changes, following full consultation by NATS as the change sponsor, would be submitted to and assessed by the independent aviation regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority, in accordance with the Airspace Change Process
	www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/CAP725.PDF

Aviation: Carbon Emissions

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the most recent estimate is ofthe percentage contribution of aviation, based on emissions by all aircraft departing from UK airports, and including the radiative forcing effect, to UK climate change emissions.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 26 April 2007
	 International aviation is not included in the UK's climate change inventory as there is no internationally agreed method for allocating such emissions between states. In 2005 aviation represented 6.3 per cent. of UK emissions, calculated as a proportion of emissions in the UK inventory plus emissions from international aviation and shipping departing the UK. Detailed data may be viewed at:
	www.defra.gov.uk/environment/statistics/index.htm.
	As the "Future of Air Transport Progress Report" (December 2006) noted, aviation emissions arising from the combustion of kerosene include carbon dioxide, water vapour, nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, particulates and other compounds. These give rise to "radiative forcing" impacts. The total radiative impacts were estimated by the EC TRADEOFF project to be approximately twice those of carbon dioxide (excluding cirrus cloud formation).
	Using a radiative forcing multiplier of two, emissions from flights departing the UK contributed approximately 13 per cent. of total UK emissions in 2005. However, the figures for non-aviation sources do not include any radiative forcing attributable to them, as conclusive figures are not available.

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his most recent estimate is of the percentage of total climate change impact from UK sources contributed by the UK aviation sector, as defined by the Transport White Paper 2004, as a result of radiative forcing; and how that estimate was derived.

Gillian Merron: I refer the hon. Member to the response I have given to the hon. Member for East Surrey (Mr. Ainsworth) today (UIN 134036).

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the percentage contribution of aviation to the overall UK climate change impact is, calculated on the basis of emissions attributable toUK citizens on outward and return flights from UK airports, including the radiative forcing effect.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 1 May 2007
	 I refer the hon. Member to my answer given today to his related question (UIN 134036).
	There are no equivalent data which relate emissions attributable to UK citizens' travel. The Office for National Statistics International Passenger Survey provides information from surveys of overseas visits by UK residents but this information is not directly related to emissions.

Crossrail: Finance

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what shortfall in funding exists between current financial provision for Crossrail and actual project costs;
	(2)  when his Department plans to submit its final proposal to HM Treasury for the funding of Crossrail.

Tom Harris: The Crossrail project has been allocated a total of £408 million in funding to date, including an additional £154 million that has been recently agreed for ongoing project development.The full cost of the project is projected to be around £15-16 billion in cash prices.
	The Department has regular discussions with HM Treasury on many matters. This includes the funding and financing of Crossrail, which will be considered further in the context of Sir Michael Lyon's recommendations on local government finances and wider spending pressures and priorities. However,the affordability challenge represented by the scheme remains significant.

East Coast Railway Line: Standards

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what performance measures his Department has in place to monitor the quality of service provided on the East Coast Mainline.

Tom Harris: GNER measures service quality in terms of both train punctuality and also areas suchas train cleanliness, station condition and customer service. Punctuality is monitored on a daily basis by Network Rail, with statistics published by the Office of Rail Regulation. Other areas are audited by GNER and the results reviewed by the Department against Key Performance Benchmarks set for the franchise. The Department also takes note of National Passenger Survey results in order to be assured that GNER service quality to the rail traveller is maintained.

Parking: Fixed Penalties

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the implications of the recent High Court judgment on the issuing of parking tickets by post in London forthe extension of the postal penalty notice system throughout the UK.

Gillian Merron: Although the official transcript of the judgment in TfL  v. PATAS (interested party—Simeon Ademolake) is not yet available, the Secretary of State is considering the amendments that could be made to the wording of the draft regulations to implement the parking provisions in Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 to cover such a situation.

Railways: Wales

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how many train stations in Wales have manned ticket kiosks; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many train stations in Wales have automated ticket machines installed; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Harris: All railway stations in Wales are operated by Arriva Trains Wales ('ATW'). Under the Welsh rail devolution arrangements, the Welsh Assembly Government is responsible for the management of the ATW franchise.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much central government funding has been allocated to  (a) Suffolk County Council and  (b) each local authority for road improvements in each year since 1997.

Gillian Merron: The Department placed in the Libraries of the House detailed information on the funding allocated to local authorities in the local transport capital settlements between 1997-98 and 2005-06 (inclusive) in response to a written parliamentary question in the other place on the18 January 2006,  Official Report, column WA122. Similar information was summarised per mile of road in a written response in the other place on 2 February 2006,  Official Report, columns WA77-79.
	I also refer the hon. Member to my answer of22 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 7048-50W, which provided further details of the capital funding provision for Suffolk and a number of other authorities in the Eastern Region.
	The local transport capital settlement allocations for all transport authorities in England for 2006-07 are posted on the Department's website:
	www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/ltp/capital/ltpdec2005
	Those for 2007-08 are posted on the site too:
	www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/ltp/capital/ltpsettle06/allocationspreadsheet

Traffic Lights

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will investigate the effect on the flow of traffic of a flashing yellow traffic light during off-peak hours.

Gillian Merron: The Department has no plans to consider adopting flashing yellow traffic signals during off-peak hours. Removing the protection affordedby a red signal leads to concerns for the safety of pedestrians, especially blind or partially sighted pedestrians. The preferred method is for more traffic responsive operation of traffic signals which should lead to reductions in unnecessary delays.

Community Support Officers: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many police community support officers have been stationed in Great Yarmouth since 1997;
	(2)  how many police officers have been stationed in Great Yarmouth in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: Data are not collected for the borough of Great Yarmouth, the available data for the requested dates are for the Norfolk police force, and are given in table 1.
	Additionally, data are collected for the Eastern Basic Command Unit (BCU) of Norfolk police which contains North Norfolk and Great Yarmouth. These data are available for police officers from 2003 onwards, and are given in table 2; and for police community support officers from 2005 onwards, and are given in table 3.
	Police strength data are published annually in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin series "Police Service Strength, England and Wales". The latest publication (data as at 31 March 2006) can be downloaded from:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb1306.pdf
	
		
			  Table 1: police officer and police community support officer strength( 1)  (FTE) by Norfolk police force as at 31 March 1997 to 31 March 2006( 2) 
			  Norfolk 
			  31 March:  Police Officers( 3)  PCSOs( 4) 
			 1997 1,432 n/a 
			 1998 1,430 n/a 
			 1999 1,381 n/a 
			 2000 1,381 n/a 
			 2001 1,420 n/a 
			 2002 1,468 n/a 
			 2003 1,499 12 
			 2004 1,510 33 
			 2005 1,544 68 
			 2006 1,557 65 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (2) Police community support officers were introduced in statute in 2002, therefore data is not available prior to 2002-03. (3) Full-time equivalent excludes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave (comparable with earlier years figures). (4) Full-time equivalent includes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: police officer strength( 1)  (FTE) by Eastern Basic Command Unit of Norfolk police force as at 31 March 2003 to 31 March 2006( 2) 
			  Eastern BCU 
			  31 March:  Police officers( 3) 
			 2003 384 
			 2004 389 
			 2005 377 
			 2006 381 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (2) Police community support officers were introduced in statute in 2002, therefore data is not available prior to 2002-03. (3) Full-time equivalent includes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: police community support officer strength( 1)  (FTE) by Eastern Basic Command Unit of Norfolk police force as at 30 June 2005 to 30 June 2006( 2) 
			  Eastern BCU 
			   PCSOs 
			 30 June 2005 24 
			 30 June 2006 39 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (2) This collection was undertaken by the Home Office Police Human Resources Unit and does not form part of the "Police Service Strength" statistical series.

Extradition

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give details of each extradition request by a foreign government which has been  (a) granted and  (b) refused in each of the last five years.

Joan Ryan: For the purposes of this reply a copy of the table has been placed in the Library. The table has assumed that the details required in the question are the requesting country and the year of extradition, or the year in which the case was closed for other reasons. The figures exclude:
	(i) any requests which may have been closed before arrests for extradition took place;
	(ii) any requests made to Scotland or Northern Ireland, which are matters for the Scotland Office and Northern Ireland Office respectively; and
	(iii) any requests made under the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) mechanism as these are made by the judicial authorities of other European Union member states rather than by foreign governments.
	European Union member states entered the EAW on the following dates:
	1 January 2004—Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom;
	27 July 2004—Austria, Cyprus, France, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta. Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia;
	1 March 2005—Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Slovakia; and
	28 July 2005—Italy.
	Finally, it should be noted that the requests to which the figures relate will in many cases have been madein earlier years than those in which the resulting extraditions took place or in which the cases were closed.

HM Prison Coldingley

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the recovery of  (a) drugs and  (b) pornographic material at HM Prison Coldingley earlier this month; what estimate he has made of the street value of the recovery of each; what mechanism was used in the transportation of this contraband into the prison establishment; what steps he plans to take to tighten (i) searching and (ii) monitoring arrangements at the prison establishment; and what assessment he has made of the (A) competency of staff and (B) adequacy of resources in the security department at the prison establishment in preventing contraband from being transported into the establishment.

Gerry Sutcliffe: On 15 March a quantity of drugs, mobile phones and DVDs were found following an intelligence led search. This find was as a result of a joint operation with Surrey police. The police estimate the street price of the drugs at £6-7,000. The staff involved in this operation have been commended for their actions and the resources available to ensure a positive response to the supply of controlled drugs are kept under review. For reasons of security, and to maximise the possibility of future finds, it would not be appropriate to comment further.

Naturalisation Test

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what percentageof people were successful in the Life in the UK naturalisation test in each month since November 2005.

John Reid: The number and percentage of candidates who have been successful in the Life in the UK test in each month since November 2005 is set out in the table.
	Success in the test does not guarantee that an applicant will be granted citizenship (or, from 2 April 2007, settlement) as other factors will be taken into account in making a decision.
	
		
			   Passes  Pass rate (percentage) 
			 November 2005 2,066 72.7 
			 December 2005 2,926 69.0 
			 January 2006 5,042 69.2 
			 February 2006 6,933 70.1 
			 March 2006 8,781 69.1 
			 April 2006 7,526 69.2 
			 May 2006 8,436 67.9 
			 June 2006 8,575 67.3 
			 July 2006 8,527 67.4 
			 August 2006 9,417 67.9 
			 September 2006 11,764 67.1 
			 October 2006 11,501 66.7 
			 November 2006 10,856 66.1 
			 December 2006 8,055 65.8 
			 January 2007 11,754 67.8 
			 February 2007 14,282 70.0 
			
			 Total since November 2005 136,441 68.0

Offenders: Employment

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the  (a) number and  (b) proportion of (i) men and (ii) women leaving prison who had a job to go to; and what the equivalent figures were (A) 10 and (B) 20 years ago.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information is not currently available in the specific format requested. HM Prison Service collects the total number of prisoners who have education, training or employment (ETE) secured upon release. This data is supplied in the following table for the last two financial years, broken down by gender, along with the prison system target for this measure. ETE information was not collected in the current format before April 2002.
	
		
			  Total ETE outcomes for 2005 - 06 and 2006 - 07 
			   Total ETE outcomes  System ETE target 
			   Female  Male  Total  
			 2005-06 1804 41074.5 42878.5  
			 2006-07(1) 1642.5 3724405 38887  
			 (1)( )Data for 2006-07 is provisional 
		
	
	Outcomes include those who attended Freshstart appointments at Jobcentre Plus, whereby prisoners who do not have a job or training place to go to on release are linked into employment, training and benefits advice and support immediately after release.
	Freshstart interview attendance data for February and March 2007 has not yet been received.
	HM Prison Service is implementing new systems to ensure the specific information requested is available for the 2007-08 financial year.

Offenders: Employment

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of  (a) the re-offending rates of those who find a job on leaving prison and  (b) those who do not.

Gerry Sutcliffe: No assessment has been made to date of the re-offending rates of those who find a job on leaving prison or of those who do not have a jobon release. However, work is currently underway to analyse the findings of three resettlement surveys of prisoners conducted at the point of release and this will provide such an assessment. Findings from this work should be available by the autumn of 2007 and published on the RDS NOMS website.

Prison Service: Corruption

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the value of fraudulent expense claims made by HM Prison Service staff in each of the last 24 months for which figures are available; what disciplinary action was taken against individuals involved; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: During the 24 months to 31 March 2007, there were seven cases of fraudulent expense claims formally investigated, detailed in the table.

Prisoners: Medical Treatments

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate isof the average waiting time between assessment of a prisoner and subsequent transfer to a hospital for physical or mental care.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested is not collected centrally.
	Prisoners who are assessed as requiring treatmentin hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983 should be so transferred within 12 weeks of the responsible national health service organisation receiving the referral. A reduced waiting time standard of two weeks is currently being piloted.
	For hospital appointments, Prison Service Order 3050, continuity of care for prisoners, sets out what prison governors must do to ensure prisoners receive timely clinical interventions and treatment. A copy has been placed in the Library. It is also available on the HM Prison Service website at:
	http://pso.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/PSO_3050_continuity_of_healthcare_for_prisoners.doc

Prisons: Misconduct

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State forthe Home Department whether the conclusions ofthe inquiry into misconduct of senior officers in the segregation unit at HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs were considered during the process of appointing the new governor at HM Prison Whitemoor; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The conclusions of the inquiry into the misconduct of senior officers in the segregation unit at HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs were not considered during the process of appointing the Governor ofHM Prison Whitemoor.

Prisons: Security

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what resources he has made available to each  (a) prison establishment and  (b) the Professional Standards Unit to reduce the level of trafficking of contraband in the financial year 2007-08; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: There are 13 Area Professional Standards Managers, 128 Local Professional Standards Managers, a central Professional Standards Unit of13 staff. In addition, there are ongoing developments to the types of equipment and training available to staff to detect contraband or improve the use of intelligence.

Rape: Convictions

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what the conviction rate was for rape cases in 2006;
	(2)  how many rape prosecutions where DNA or other forensic evidence was used led to  (a) a conviction and  (b) an acquittal in each of the last three years.

John Reid: Court proceedings (including rape convictions) for 2006 will be available in the autumnof 2007.
	Information on whether DNA evidence was used to bring about a conviction to court is not available as the individual circumstance of a case are not held centrally.

Tasker Inquiry

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions the terms of reference of the tasker inquiry have been  (a) amended and  (b) altered; how many interim reports have been produced during the lifetime of the inquiry; when the most recent interim report was produced; what the reason is for the most recent delay to the completion of the inquiry; how many extensions to the inquiry have been authorised; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The commissioning authority has formally amended the terms of reference once, at the request of one of the complainants.
	No interim reports have been published. A partial report has been submitted to the commissioning authority. The delay in completion of the investigation has been caused by the breadth of the terms of reference, and the scale and complexity of the ensuing investigation.
	No formal extensions have been granted. The commissioning authority has been kept informed of the progress of the investigation throughout, and has accepted the revised timeframe.

Council Tax Benefits: Greater London

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much council tax benefit was unclaimed in each London borough in each of the last five years.

James Plaskitt: Estimates of take-up are not available below the level of Great Britain. The latest estimatesof the take-up of the main income-related benefits: income support, pension credit, housing benefit, council tax benefit and jobseeker's allowance (income-based) in Great Britain can be found in the DWP report entitled "Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2004/2005". Copies of the publication are available in the Library.

Departments: Handbooks

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of20 February 2007,  Official Report, column 630W, on departments: handbooks, if he will place in the Library a CD-Rom containing the details of the terms and conditions of service for staff of his Department.

Anne McGuire: Development of Conditions of Service policies in DWP is a continuous evolutionary process. A number of the corporate policies also take the form of policy frameworks, stating broad principles within which individual DWP businesses are permitted to develop their own Conditions of Service policies according to the services they deliver.
	The effect of this is that a CD-Rom of the Conditions of Service material would only be accurate, relevant and up-to-date on the day it was created, and would not have the functionality to link to other sources of information referred to within the policy material or to business specific policy material.
	Therefore while there are no plans to place a CD-ROM in the Library Members who want access to specific Conditions of Service policies should contact:
	Kevin White, DWP's Human Resources Director General about corporate policies or the relevant business Chief Executive in constituent specific cases, and request a CD-ROM of the specific policy material.

Departments: India

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which Ministers in his Department have visited India in the last 12 months; on how many occasions each Minister visited India; and what the length was of each visit.

Anne McGuire: There were no visits made byany of the Departments Ministers to India in the last 12 months.

Departments: Surveys

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library the results of each staff survey in his Department in each of the last five years.

Anne McGuire: Over the last five years, DWP has routinely published its staff survey results within the public domain. Survey results have been supplied to main Libraries in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as those in Oxford and Cambridge. Last year, following a request from Nicola Beckford, BBC Political Programmes, Cabinet Office arranged for direct access to all main Government departments' survey results through the civil service website. DWP Survey 2004 and 2005 results can already be accessed there. Results for DWP Survey 2006 will also appear there shortly. In addition, DWP is making separate arrangements to place its staff survey results, since 2002, on the DWP website.

IT Projects

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Twickenham of 26 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1239W, on IT projects, what the purpose was of the benefits processing replacement programme (BPRP); how it was related to the customer accounting and payment strategy; and through what new programme he expects some of the spend on the BPRP to be of future value.

Anne McGuire: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 2( nd) May 2007
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about the benefits processing replacement programme (BPRP) and the customer accounting and payment strategy (CAPS). This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	BPRP was launched in November 2004 to develop a replacement for our legacy IT systems, which calculate benefit payments in Jobcentre Plus and the Disability and Carers Service. CAPS was a much earlier Departmental IT programme with the aim of developing and implementing a replacement for the order book payment system. This would have provided customers with a single payment account and a smart card to access their benefit payments through the Post Office network. There is no connection between the two programmes.
	We expect that a substantial part of the investment in BPRP will be of future benefit to the Department. For example, software licences and a testing and development environment have already been of benefit to other IT projects in Jobcentre Plus, and will be of use as we develop IT support for the employment and support allowance. Additionally, some of the planning and design work undertaken by BPRP will be of value to Jobcentre Plus in taking forward our IT Strategy.
	I hope this is helpful.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects to reply to the letter of 13 March from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire on the Disability Discrimination Act.

Anne McGuire: holding answer 30 April 2007
	I replied to the hon. Member's letter on 26 April 2007.

New Deal Schemes: Self- Employed

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what projection he has made of the number of people likely to go through the new deal self-employment programme in the next 12 months; and how many went through it in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what the cost is to the public purse of an unemployed person returning to work under  (a) the new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes.

Anne Snelgrove: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people completed the new deal self-employment programme in the last three years for which figures are available.

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people are expected to participate in the new deal self-employment programme in 2007-08; and how many people participated in the programme in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the cost to the public purse for an unemployed person to return to work under the new deal self-employment programme compared with other employment programmes;
	(3)  whether his Department has assessed the relative rates at which participants return to work under the new deal self-employment programme compared with other employment programmes.

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people are expected to pass through the new deal self-employment programme in 2007; and what the figure was in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what assessment his Department has made of the relative merits of returning to work under the new deal self-employment programme compared with other employment programmes.

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made ofthe relative benefits to  (a) Government and  (b) unemployed people of returning to work underthe new deal self-employment programme and other employment programmes;
	(2)  how many people he expects to go through the new deal self-employment programme in 2007-08; and how many went through in each of the previous three years;
	(3)  how much it costs the public purse on average for an unemployed person to return to work under  (a) the new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of an unemployed person returning to work under  (a) the new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the numberof people likely to go through the new deal self-employment programme in 2007; and how many went through the programme in each of the last three years;
	(3)  whether his Department has assessed the relative effectiveness of returning to work under the new deal self-employment programme and other employment programmes.

Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  whether he has estimated the cost to the public purse of assisting an unemployed person to return to work under the  (a) new deal self-employment programme and  (b) other employment programmes;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of people likely to participate in the new deal self-employment programme in the next 12 months; and how many people participated in each of the previous three years.

Eric Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the new deal self-employment programme at returning people to work compared with other employment programmes.

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent assessment hehas made of the effectiveness of the new deal self-employment programme; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: I refer the hon. Members to the written answer I gave on 23 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1184-86W.

Personal Capability Assessments

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 7 February 2007,  Official Report, column 1056W, on personal capability assessments, who owns the LIMA software.

Jim Murphy: The Logic integrated Medical Assessment (LiMA) computer program is used by Atos Origin Medical Services and supports doctors carrying out disability assessments on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions. The DWP hold copyrightand intellectual property rights over the programand license a third party—Atos Origin Medical Services—to use, customise, distribute, incorporate, market, maintain, support, sell and sub-license LiMA in return for payment of a royalty to the DWP.

Social Security Benefits

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support his Department plans to provide to  (a) A2 and (b) A8 nationals in 2007-08; and what the estimated cost is of providing this support.

Jim Murphy: For details of the support available to A2 and A8 nationals, I refer the hon. Member to the written answer given on 13 March 2007,  Official Report, column 274W.
	The information on cost is not available.

Social Security Benefits: Correspondence

Frank Cook: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many mail items were sent by those bodies that award  (a) pension credit,  (b) housing benefit,  (c) income support,  (d) jobseeker's allowance,  (e) incapacity benefit,  (f) council tax benefit and  (g) state pension for each of the last five years; how many of these were sent to deceased individuals; what arrangements are in place to ensure that the databases of these organisations are updated with details of individuals who have moved house; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: Information requested is listed in the following table. Housing and council tax benefitare awarded by the claimant's local authority and therefore, are not included in the table. The information is extracted from management information held by the Department's two Regional Delivery Centres and does not include numbers of mail items sent from the Department's local offices about these benefits as this information is not held centrally and could be obtained only by disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Volume  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			  (a) Pension credit 3,053,168 9,601,349 16,826,461 14,595,985 11,694,195 
			  (c) Income support 40,579,060 36,211,335 25,970,123 21,882,796 21,575,397 
			  (d) Jobseeker's allowance 36,731,443 33,285,018 26,238,083 19,584,809 19,806,068 
			  (e) Incapacity benefit 15,082,958 12,306,938 11,357,700 9,214,905 9,860,895 
			  (g) State pension 26,305,633 25,399,385 24,973,194 19,251,923 26,755,872 
		
	
	The information about how many mail items were sent to deceased individuals is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The Department has processes in place to collect death notifications from the Office for National Statistics (for England and Wales), the General Registrar (Scotland) and the General Registrar (Northern Ireland) on a weekly basis in order to update records. However, many notifications are received from the next of kin in advance of the notification from the Registrars. As part of the Office for National Statistics Modernisation Programme, dates of death will be notified to the Department on a daily basis from March 2008which should ensure the level of notifications sentto deceased individuals by the Department is minimised.
	The Department received over 18.5 million notifications of change of address in 2006, relating to the actual number of individuals who have moved. For example if a family consisting of man, wife and two children changed address, we would expect to receive four changes to personal details, if the children were the subjects of a child benefit claim. Every effort is made to ensure databases are updated with change of address details as soon as they are received.

Temporary Accommodation: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1180W, on housing benefit: homelessness, whether his Department has assessed Westminster city council's ability to procure short-term leased temporary accommodation for homeless households within its area following the introduction of his proposed changes to housing benefit subsidy arrangements in 2007-08.

James Plaskitt: No assessment was done of the procurement of short term leased accommodationin Westminster city council's area. The changes introduced in April 2007 to the subsidy scheme for temporary accommodation were a modest reduction in the available subsidy and should not have an impacton an authority's ability to secure temporary accommodation.

Hospitals: Hygiene

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 23 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 891-92W, on hospitals: hygiene, how much of the £400,000 funding providedin 2006-07 each hospital trust in Northern Ireland accessed to run hand hygiene/clean care campaigns; what the nature was of each campaign; and what assessment has been made of their effectiveness.

Paul Goggins: I have placed a detailed report on the matter raised by the hon. Gentleman in the Library.

Medicine: Education

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the proportion of junior doctors' time which has beenused for  (a) activities related to modernising medical careers and  (b) providing a service for patients in the last 12 months.

Paul Goggins: A series of workshops were organised to advise experienced SHOs and foundation trainees about MMC and the new recruitment process. These were run outside normal working hours to ensure least disruption to the service. Year 2 foundation traineesare required to attend a 10 day regional generic skills programme, which is deducted from their study leave entitlement.
	Trainees are entitled to study leave and annual leave in accordance with the terms and conditions of service and consistent with maintaining essential services. On-site training of doctors and the provision of a service to patients are inextricably linked therefore it is not possible to extract this information.

Medicine: Education

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what criteria other than interview performance are used in Northern Ireland to select doctors for run through training to become consultants;
	(2)  what the average duration has been of Medical Training Application Service round 1 interviews in each speciality in Northern Ireland;
	(3)  whether candidates' Medical Training Application Service application forms will be taken into account when selecting individuals for speciality training and fixed term speciality training appointments forAugust 2007.

Paul Goggins: For selection to the run through training programme, candidates complete a 30 minute interview, in addition to providing copies of references, a training portfolio and evidence of acquired clinical and academic skills. Panel members will have access to all relevant documentation including the candidate's application form.

Out-Patients: Attendance

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many missed  (a) hospital and  (b) general practitioner appointments there were in each of the health boards in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The total number of missed hospital appointments in each financial year 2001-02 to 2005-06 is provided in the following table. These figures represent the number of outpatient appointments where a patient did not attend and failed to give advanced warning to the hospital.
	
		
			  Health board  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06 
			 EHSSB 131,449 128,293 128,766 123,672 125,143 
			 NHSSB 23,587 23,019 22,677 22,472 23,355 
			 SHSSB 31,624 29,066 28,812 26,879 24,617 
			 WHSSB 25,153 23,592 24,554 24,715 26,893 
			 NI Total 211,813 203,970 204,809 197,738 200,008 
			  Note: Data for the financial year 2006-07 will be published in July 2007. Data is disaggregated by Health Board of provider Trust.  Source: Departmental Return KH09. 
		
	
	The Department does not hold information on missed appointments at GP surgeries. This could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Schools: Crimes of Violence

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many attacks on school teachers there were in schools in each education and library board area of Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: The Department does not collect the information requested.
	However, from the 2002-03 school year, statistics on the reasons for suspension have been gathered annually from each education and library board and relate to the number of individual suspensions, not to the number of pupils suspended.
	The following table details the number of suspensions(1) for physical attacks on staff, in each education and library board, in the 2002-03—2004-05 school years.
	(1)( )The count of occasions is based on each incidence of suspension, where an incident is defined as a count from the first day a pupil was suspended until the last day suspended. Prior to 2004-05, the count of occasions was based on each record of suspension identified by the education and library boards, and in some instances longer periods of suspension may have had more than one record. This change is due to an improvement in the data collection systems for suspensions in the education and library boards, which has enabled better analysis of the data. As a result, the number of occasions pupils were suspended in 2004-05 has decreased from previous years. However, care should be taken when comparing the number of occasions in 2004-05 with the number of occasions in previous years.
	
		
			  Physical attacks on staff 
			  Education and  library b oard  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			 Belfast 75 73 84 
			 Western 99 72 49 
			 North Eastern 91 49 51 
			 South Eastern 64 79 57 
			 Southern 36 47 21 
			 NI Total 365 320 262 
		
	
	Reasons for expulsion were first collected in 2003-04. The numbers involved are relatively small and arenot disaggregated between education and libraryboards because of the risk that a school/pupil may be identifiable.
	The following table shows the total number of pupils expelled for physical attacks on staff for the 2003-04 and 2004-05 school years.
	
		
			  Physical attacks on staff 
			   Number 
			 2003-04 7 
			 2004-05 7 
		
	
	The suspension and expulsions statistics for 2005-06 school year are currently being analysed by our statistics branch and will be placed on the DE website when this has been completed.

Sexually Transmitted Diseases

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many cases of  (a) HIV,  (b) chlamydia,  (c) gonorrhoea,  (d) syphilis,  (e) genital warts and  (f) genital herpes there have been in Northern Ireland in the last 12 months.

Paul Goggins: The number of cases of sexually transmitted diseases in Northern Ireland in the past 12 months is not available. However, the number of new episodes of sexually transmitted diseases that were recorded at Genito-Urinary Medicine clinics across Northern Ireland during the 2006 is presented in the following table.
	
		
			  Condition  Number of new episodes 
			  (a) HIV 55 
			  (b) Chlamydia 2,686 
			  (c) Gonorrhoea 292 
			  (d) Syphilis 82 
			  (e) Anogenital Warts 3,100 
			  (f) Anogential Herpes Simplex 418 
			  Notes: 1. Figures relate to the period 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2006. The figures are currently provisional and may subsequently change. 2. These figures relate to episodes of diagnosis and/or treatment of infection or disease and not individual people. Thus one individual may contribute to more than one episode.  Source: Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre Northern Ireland (CDSC (NI)).

Sportsgrounds: Lisburn

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his estimate is of what further expenditure on the Maze project will be before theend of 2007; and how much will be spent on  (a) consultancy fees,  (b) staff costs and  (c) facilitating the work of the Maze Panel.

David Hanson: Estimated expenditure in 2007-08on the full Maze/Long Kesh programme (including stadium costs) is some £7.6 million.
	Of this, £4.1 million is estimated for consultancy fees and £0.4 million for staff costs. The costs of the Maze/Long Kesh Monitoring Group are limited to travel and attendance fees, which last year cost around £2,000.
	All expenditure post 8 May will be a matter for the local Executive.

Unemployment Benefits

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of Statefor Northern Ireland how many people were on unemployment benefit in Northern Ireland in each year since 1997.

David Hanson: Jobseeker's allowance replaced unemployment benefit in October 1996. The average number of people claiming jobseeker's allowance between 1997 and 2006 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Average number of claimants 
			 1997 55,665 
			 1998 56,897 
			 1999 48,978 
			 2000 42,959 
			 2001 40,627 
			 2002 39,965 
			 2003 37,885 
			 2004 34,528 
			 2005 31,889 
			 2006 29,902

Digital Switchover

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of28 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 1551-52W, on digital switchover, whether persons registered as blind or partially sighted but not included in the Department for Work and Pensions records were included in her estimate of eligible persons for the targeted assistance scheme.

Shaun Woodward: The estimates take account of people who are registered as blind and partially sighted but who are not on DWP records and so cannot be allocated to any particular parliamentary constituency or ITV region.

Equality: Grants

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what grants have been made to institutions in  (a) the UK and  (b) the North East for events marking the bicentenary of the first Act to abolish the transatlantic slave trade.

David Lammy: The Heritage Lottery Fund has made 115 awards totalling over £11 million to projects related to the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade and the slave trade generally.
	Five of these have been in the North East (one completed project and four approved projects). They are:
	£40,300 to Durham University Archives for Learning for a larger project which includes an element on the slave trade. (Completed)
	£50,000 to Tyne and Wear Museums for Remembering Slavery; an exhibition showcasing objects, photographs, paintings and documents from the Museum's collections related to the trans-Atlantic slave trade. (Approved)
	£49,400 to Stockton Museums Service for 'Manacles and Money'. (Approved)
	£49,000 to the Black History Consortium for their Commemoration of the Bicentenary of the Abolition of Slavery in 2007. (Approved)
	£17,500 to Identity on Tyne for 'Mapped Roots'. (Approved). This project was funded in collaboration with Arts Council England, which has awarded a further £20,000.
	So far, Arts Council England has made a total of40 grants to bicentenary projects totalling £1,282,354. Two of these projects are in the North East. The 'Mapped Roots' project and 'Changing Perspectives', a two year study of Black families and their stories of migration into the North East, which has received £5,000 for its first stage.
	The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) have so far made 17 grants totalling £81,900 across the UK. These include two MLA North East Strategic Commissioning Grants. The first for £10,000 to the Literary and Philosophical Society to conduct a mapping exercise to identify and list slavery related archives and documents held by four key record offices and libraries in the region. The second for £10,000 to the Northumberland Museum Archives and Country Park and Durham University Library Archives Special Collections to create a number of e-learning packages focusing on slavery for use in schools across the North East region.
	The Awards for All grants programme funded by the Big Lottery Fund with the Arts Council, Heritage Lottery Fund and Sport England have so far made23 grants totalling £151,641 to projects to mark the bicentenary across England and Wales. None of these have been in the North-East.

Film

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps the Government  (a) is taking and  (b) plans to take to foster and develop the growth of the British film industry.

Shaun Woodward: Government are fostering the growth of the British film industry through its strategic agency the UK Film Council. This was set up in 2000 to create a sustainable film industry and to promote the widest possible enjoyment and understanding of cinema throughout the nations and regions of the UK. The Government have also introduced generous new fiscal incentives to support the production of British filmsby delivering benefit directly to producers and by stimulating inward investment into the UK film industry from overseas.
	Following extensive consultation, the UK Film Council has recently submitted its next three year plan to my Department. This sets out the Council's future strategic and funding priorities and details the initiatives it will be running to deliver these objectives.

Gambling: Licensing

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department plans to take to make more effective the delivery networks identified in its Capability Review.

David Lammy: My Department is fully committed to improving the effectiveness of the delivery networks identified in its Capability Review. Details of how this will be achieved are outlined in the Permanent Secretary's response to the Capability Review(pages 5-8) and in "Transforming DCMS", the transformation action plan. Both are published on the DCMS website:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/Reference_library/Publications/

Internet: Regulation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with  (a) the Chancellor of the Exchequer and  (b) Ofcom on the introduction of the new regulatory system for internet sites referred to by the Chancellor in a speech on 7 March; and when these discussions took place.

David Lammy: There have been no discussions between my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and the Chancellor on the regulation of internet sites.
	The independent regulator, Ofcom, does not regulate content on the internet, but does have a statutory duty to promote media literacy under the Communications Act 2003. In pursuit of that duty, Ofcom have been working to raise people's awareness of how to use web browsers, electronic programme guides and other tools in order to navigate safely and effectively. They are currently developing proposals for the management of audio and visual content using content labelling and tools such as internet filtering and firewalls. DCMS and Ofcom officials have had periodic discussions about Ofcom's plans in this area.

Joint Creative Economy Programme

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will publish the supporting papers provided for the industry summits held to inform the further development of the Joint Creative Economy Programme.

Shaun Woodward: It is not possible to release the supporting papers provided for the industry summits as this would inhibit the formulation or development of government policy. The papers were intended to inform the development of policy underpinning our approach to supporting the creative economy. We will publish the outcome of our discussion in the forthcoming Creative Economy Green Paper, planned for the summer.

Mass Media

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether the new text-based labelling system of media content to be introducedby Ofcom referred to by the Chancellor in a speech on 7 March, will be applied to the print media.

Shaun Woodward: The independent regulator, Ofcom, has a duty to promote media literacy in the Communications Act 2003. In pursuit of that duty, Ofcom has been developing proposals for a common labelling framework which would extend to material either broadcast or found on electronic communications networks.

Olympic Games: Greater London

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will place in the Library a copy of the revised memorandum of understanding with the Mayor of London on the costs of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympic games; and if she will make a statement.

Tessa Jowell: My statement to the House on the15 of March, set out that the Mayor of London andI have agreed to rewrite our memorandum of understanding to put in place profit sharing arrangements to enable the lottery and future regeneration needs of the local area to benefit from the returns on the investment that we are making in the Olympic park.
	Work on this has begun, when it is completed I will have a copy of the revised memorandum placed in the Library of the House.

Radio: Regulation

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to reduce the regulatory burden on analogue commercial radio.

Shaun Woodward: The regulatory regime for analogue commercial radio is established under the Communications Act 2003 and the Broadcasting Acts. Detailed implementation is the responsibility of the independent communications regulator Ofcom. Ofcom are currently consulting on phase 3 of their review of the future of radio and, subject to the outcome of that consultation, Ofcom and Government will consider the case for reducing regulatory or legislative burdens on analogue commercial radio.

Sports: Scotland

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much National Lottery money was paid to sports-based causes in Scotland via distributors other than SportScotland in each of the last five years.

Richard Caborn: The Big Lottery Fund has suppliedthe following information about grants to physical activity and sport by it and its predecessor bodies. The information covers the last five complete financial years.
	
		
			  £ 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  Total 
			 Active Futures 0 0 0 927,246 3,901,081 4,828,327 
			 NOPES Activities 0 33,569,056 1,276,043 0 0 34,845,099 
			 NOPES Facilities 2,910,336 4,119,865 27,980,074 13,852,510 0 48,862,785 
			 Young Peoples Fund 0 0 0 0 1,111,482 1,111,482 
			 Awards for All 0 0 250,000 250,000 500,000 1,000,000 
			 School Sports Coordinators(1) 0 0 940,000 930,000 930,000 2,800,000 
			 Youth Football(2) 0 0 0 0 1,500,000 1,500,000 
			 Total 2,910,336 37,688,921 30,446,117 15,959,756 7,942,563 94,947,693 
			 (1) Grant administered and delivered by Sport Scotland (2) Grant administered by Sport Scotland and delivered by the Scottish Football Association. 
		
	
	UK Sport has supplied the following information about grants in Scotland in each of the last five completed financial years. The figures given include grants to athletes who represent Scotland, to non governmental bodies based in Scotland and to sport events which could have benefited Scotland.
	
		
			  £ 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  Total 
			 Athlete 580,028 551,908 533,190 441,546 725,421 2,832,093 
			 NGB 247,931 300,456 371,627 533,406 318,380 1,771,800 
			 Events 376,908 311,935 272,040 70,000 100,000 1,130,883 
			 Total 1,204,867 1,164,299 1,176,857 1,044,952 1,143,801 5,734,776

Television: Telephone Services

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her Department's policy is in dealing with the recent television premium rate phone call incidents.

Shaun Woodward: Responsibility for the regulation of these services rests with the independent regulators, Ofcom and ICSTIS. In response to recent concerns, ICSTIS has set out a range of actions aimed at restoring public trust in premium rate services. This includes the introduction of a licensing regime for all premium rate service providers operating participation TV services. In addition, Ofcom is now undertaking an inquiry into these services and will examine consumer protection issues. It will report to the Ofcom Board in early summer. In the meantime, Ofcom is investigating specific allegations. Where this exposes serious failures of compliance, or failures to protect the interests of consumers, Ofcom has the power to impose statutory sanctions and intends to use them.

Tourism: North East Region

John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the value of tourism to the North East in each year since 2002.

Shaun Woodward: The table shows the total spend in the North East from (i) UK residents (with an overnight stay) and (ii) overseas residents, since 2002.
	
		
			  Domestic overnight spend( 1) 
			  North East  £ million 
			 2002(2) 868 
			 2003 824 
			 2004 700 
			 2005 822 
			 (1 )The methodology for the UKTS changed in 2005 meaning that comparisons with previous years should be treated with caution. This change occurred as a result of concerns with the quality of 2004 data, which is thought to be an under-representation of the true position. (2) For 2002, data relates to Northumbria only.  Source: UK Tourism Survey (National Tourist Boards) 
		
	
	
		
			  Total spend by overseas residents 
			  North East  £ million 
			 2002 169 
			 2003 213 
			 2004 194 
			 2005 206 
			  Source: International Passenger Survey (ONS) 
		
	
	In addition, account should be taken of the total spend of day visitors to, or within, the North East. The Leisure Day Visits Survey in 2002-03 recorded a total spend of £800 million to destinations in the North East. It is not possible to provide a time series for this information as the surveys are run intermittently.

Afghanistan: Drugs

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State forForeign and Commonwealth Affairs what the  (a) responsibilities and  (b) functions are of the UK's role as (i) G8 lead nation for the counter narcotics campaign as set out in the Joint Declaration of an Enduring Relationship between the UK and Afghanistan and (ii) partner nation in the field for counter narcotics, as set out in the Enduring Relationship Action Plan 2006-07.

Margaret Beckett: The UK took on lead G8 responsibility for counter narcotics following the Bonn Agreement in 2001. In 2006 it was agreed that the concept of 'lead nation' was redundant, as the Afghan Government now had lead responsibility for all aspects of security sector reform. The UK therefore became Afghanistan's 'partner nation' on counter narcotics.
	Signed in July 2005, the Joint Declaration ofAn Enduring Relationship between the UK and Afghanistan is a bilateral agreement between the UK and Afghanistan. The Enduring Relationship Action Plan 2006-07 sets out the commitments between the two Governments under the 2005 Joint Declaration. Both are available in the Library of the House. Under both the Joint Declaration and the Action Plan,the UK agreed to help Afghanistan mobilise and co-ordinate international efforts to end the drugs trade, in support of the four national priorities identified in the Afghan Government's national drug control strategy (NDCS) - targeting the trafficker, strengthening and diversifying legal rural livelihoods, reducing demand and developing state institutions. We are spending£270 million over three years in support of the NDCS.

Bolivia

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when a Minister from her Department last visited Bolivia.

Geoff Hoon: The then Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister, the late Nicholas Ridley, visited Bolivia in 1980. Since then a number of other Ministerial visits to Bolivia have taken place. The then Minister for Trade, right hon. Brian Wilson, visitedin May 1999 and the then Secretary of State for International Development, the right hon. Memberfor Birmingham, Ladywood (Clare Short), visited in August 1999. Most recently, the then Minister for Energy, right hon. Brian Wilson, visited in 2002.

China: Diplomatic Service

Robert Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she has raised the matter of the provision of assistance by British consular officials to British nationals of Chinese ethnic origin in China, Hong Kong and the Macao Special Administrative Regions with the Chinese government in the last 12 months; and whether she plans to take up this matter with the Chinese government in the future.

Ian McCartney: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not raised the matter of consular assistance to British nationals of Chinese ethnic origin in China, Hong Kong and the Macao Special Administrative Regions in the last 12 months, and have no plans to do so in the immediate future. Consular officials continue to make representations when appropriate.

Cuba: Political Prisoners

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what her estimate is of the number of political prisoners in Cuba.

Geoff Hoon: I refer the hon. Member to the answerI gave to him on 20 March 2007,  Official Report, column 835W.
	We will continue to press the Cuban authorities for the immediate release of all political prisoners.

Iraq: Peace Keeping Operations

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment she has made of progress in the political, economic and social conditions in the Iraqi provinces of  (a) Al Basrah,  (b) Al Muthanna,  (c) Dhi Qar and  (d) Maysan.

Margaret Beckett: Political tension in Basra has increased following the recent withdrawal of the Fadila political party from the United Iraqi Alliance (the main Shi'a coalition). This has on occasion erupted into violence. The challenging security situation and the legacy of a distorted command economy have slowed economic development in Basra and unemployment is high. The government is working to build the capability of local institutions, including through the work of the provincial reconstruction team (PRT). Basra's elected provincial council was the first to write its own provincial development strategy—the key to unlocking central government investment. The Basra Development Forum has also been an important step towards building a closer co-operation between provincial authorities in Basra and central authorities in Baghdad to help improve the situation.
	Muthanna and Dhi Qar were transferred to Iraqi security control last year. Both provinces remain stable and their local authorities have shown themselves capable of managing the challenges they face. Unemployment is high in Dhi Qar, as well as in Muthanna. The Dhi Qar PRT is pursuing a range of projects, from basic infrastructure, water purification and electrical sub-stations, through to an amusement park and museum in Nasiriyah, and support for Dhi Qar artists' groups to improve the
	quality of life for local citizens. The Muthanna PRT is working with the provincial government to carry forward projects aimed at the province's most pressing problems: unemployment, agricultural reform, water, electricity and transport. In both al-Muthanna and Dhi Qar, the PRTs are working with the provincial authorities to build their budgetary planning capacity.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when she expects to reply to the letter of 14 March from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr. T.L. Pun.

Margaret Beckett: The letter sent from my righthon. Friend was received without his constituent's responses to the reasons for refusal provided by the entry clearance officer, preventing my providing a meaningful reply. My officials contacted my right hon. Friend's constituency office on 5 and 20 April to obtain a copy of the paperwork. When officials have received the paperwork from my right hon. Friend's office I will be able to send an appropriate reply.

Nigeria: Elections

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she has made representations to the Nigerian government following the recent presidential and gubernatorial elections on strengthening  (a) the Anti-Corruption Commission and  (b) the Independent Electoral Commission.

Ian McCartney: Immediately after the 21 April presidential elections our high commissioner in Abuja and my hon. Friend the Member for Sunderland, South (Mr. Mullin) made representations to President Obasanjo and President-elect Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, making clear that we were disappointed by the violence, corruption and the Independent National Electoral Commission's management of the elections, and that the Government of Nigeria must address these shortcomings and return to the path of reform, including the fight against corruption.
	My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary issued a statement on 23 April. The text of the statement is available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website at:
	http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029391629&a=KArticle&aid=1176969243828&year=2007&month=2007-04-01.
	We will continue to make such representations, including on the role of the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, until the Government address our concerns.

Nigeria: Elections

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when she expects to receive reports from international observers following the recent presidential and gubernatorial elections in Nigeria.

Ian McCartney: The main international observer missions have published preliminary statements. The EU election observation mission published a Statement of Preliminary Findings and Conclusions on 23 April, which is available on the EU website at: www.europa.eu/index_en.htm. The EU mission will publish a final report within two months of the conclusion of the entire electoral process. The chairman of the Commonwealth Observer Group issued an interim statement on 22 April available at: www.thecommonwealth.org/. The final report of the Observer Group will be submitted to the Commonwealth Secretary-General, who in turn will forward it to the Government of Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission, political parties and thento all Commonwealth Governments. The National Democratic Institute issued a preliminary statementof observations and recommendations on 23 April (www.ndi.org). The International Republican Institute issued a statement of Preliminary Findings on 22 April (www.iri.org) and the observer mission of the Economic Community of West African States published Preliminary Declarations on the state elections on 15 April and on the federal elections on23 April (www.ecowas.int).

Nigeria: Elections

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports she has received from European Union election observers on the extent of  (a) tampering with ballots and  (b) voter intimidation in the recent presidential and gubernatorial elections in Nigeria.

Ian McCartney: In its preliminary conclusions on the elections published on 23 April (www.eueom-ng.org), the EU election observation mission reports that in the state elections, EU observers witnessed incidents of hijacking of ballot boxes. In almost one fifth of polling stations visited, attempts to influence voters were witnessed. Disorder inside polling stations was witnessed in 15 per cent. of polling stations visited during closing and counting. In almost 30 per cent. of collation centres EU observers had indications of proof that polling results were fraudulently changed. EU observers witnessed cases of fraud, such as that in five wards in Zamfara state, where no elections took place but fake results were included in the governorship elections for the wards concerned. On election day disruption, sometimes violent, of the polling and counting processes by groups of thugs was observed in several states.
	In the federal elections EU observers witnessed examples of ballot box stuffing, alteration of official result forms, stealing of sensitive polling materials,vote buying and under age voting. In 14 per cent. of observed polling stations attempts were made to influence voters. Cases of vote buying were observedin Niger and Jigawa states. Disorder was observed in24 per cent. of the result transfer and collation centre processes observed. A number of fraudulent practices were observed. In many polling stations unused ballot papers were marked and stuffed into the ballot box resulting in almost 100 per cent. voter turnout, as observed in Kwara, Gombe, Edo and Niger states.
	Violence was judged to have been a major concern and incidents increased as the elections drew nearer. The EU observers state that credible reports indicate a total of at least 200 people were killed in election-related incidents before and during the elections. The widespread use of thugs by a number of political parties created a significant degree of fear and intimidation. Numerous violent incidents were reported by EU observers, often involving destruction of campaign material and party offices, harassment, intimidation and violent clashes between party supporters. Political sponsorship, recruitment and use of thugs was witnessed by EU observers in Borno, Abia, Taraba, Gombe, Bauchi, Kaduna, Zamfara, Niger, Oyo, Osun, Kogi and Edo states. Assaults, assassination of candidates and attempted assassinations of candidates were reported in the pre-election period. A heavier security presence contributed to a reduction in violent incidents in the federal elections. But turnout of women for the federal elections on 21 April appeared to be lower than for the state elections on 14 April, which could have been due, at least in part, to violence during the state elections.
	These observations have been confirmed in most respects by my hon. Friend the Member for Sunderland, South (Mr. Mullin) who undertook an observation mission on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Occupied Territories: Taxation

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of Statefor Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations have been made to Israel and the Palestinian authorities on the release of Palestinian tax and customs revenues collected by Israel.

Kim Howells: We welcome Israeli Prime Minister Olmert and Palestinian President Abbas' meeting on23 December 2006, and the resulting release of US$100 million in Palestinian tax revenues.
	At the General Affairs and External Relations Council on 23 April, EU Foreign Ministers repeated their call for Israel to immediately resume the transfer of withheld Palestinian tax and customs revenues, directly or through the Temporary International mechanism. We support this. Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office raised this issue with the Israeli Embassy in London on 18 April.
	We have not made any formal representationsto the Palestinian authorities, as it is the Palestinian Authority's money that is being withheld. However, we have discussed the issue with the Palestinian Authority on a number of occasions.

Parliamentary Scrutiny

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of Statefor Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on which occasions the Government overrode the scrutiny reserve resolution in each of the last five years.

Geoff Hoon: The following table provides information on the number of overrides in each House since the Government began sending twice-yearly lists to the chairpersons of the House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee and the House of Lords European Union Committee. Details of each case are included in these lists. In each case a Minister overrides the Scrutiny Reserve Resolution, they account for their action in writing to the chairperson of each Scrutiny Committee.
	
		
			  Period  House of Lords  House of Commons 
			 January to June 2003 30 26 
			 July to December 2003 34 33 
			 January to June 2004 13 16 
			 June to December 2004 20 22 
			 January to June 2005(1) 28 52 
			 July to December 2005 17 19 
			 January to June 2006 15 12 
			 July to December 2006 24 29 
			 (1) Figures for the first half of 2005 include a period when Parliament was dissolved and a period immediately after the opening of Parliament, before the European Union Committee in the House of Lords and the European Scrutiny Committee in the House of Commons could be appointed.

Somalia: Terrorism

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she is taking to seek a ceasefire by Islamic insurgents in Somalia.

Ian McCartney: The UK does not have contact with the Islamist insurgents in Somalia, but we have called for an immediate end to all fighting and publicly urged all parties to commit to a truce and agree a lasting ceasefire.
	We have repeatedly made clear that all partiesin Somalia need to reject violence and allow the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) to do their job. Any differences that some groups in Mogadishu might have with the TFG should be pursued through the National Reconciliation Congress and through dialogue with the TFG rather than by resorting to violence. We condemn any attacks on the TFG, which is the only legitimate route through which governance, peace and stability can be restored to Somalia. At the same time, we have repeatedly made clear to the TFG that they must make genuine attempts to reach out to all groups in Somalia that credibly reject violence.

Sudan

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has made to the government of Sudan on Janjaweed militia activity in Darfur.

Ian McCartney: We have pressed the Government of Sudan to act on its obligations under UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1706 (2006). This requires implementation of an effective ceasefire and of the Darfur Peace Agreement, including its provisions for the disarmament of the Janjaweed/armed militias; and a renewed political process between the Government of Sudan and the rebel groups.
	My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary condemned the most recent Government of Sudan bombing raids in North Darfur, between 19 and21 April, which resulted in a number of civilian injuries and deaths.
	To maintain pressure on the Government of Sudan to implement its commitments to the international community, we are currently discussing the elementsof a new UNSCR with international partners andthe UN.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment the Government has made of the need for a no-fly zone over Darfur; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: We utterly condemn the recent bombings in North Darfur by the Sudanese government. They are in direct violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1591 and demonstrate a lack of commitment to the peace process.
	The Sudanese government must commit to an immediate ceasefire. If they do not, we will be forced to press for tougher measures. We are considering all options, including measures to allow better monitoring of the illegal use of aircraft in Darfur.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government plans to take at United Nations level following recent reports by the United Nations Panel of Experts that the government of the Sudan is operating aircraft with United Nations markings in Darfur.

Ian McCartney: We are very concerned by reports that the Government of Sudan is operating aircraft with UN markings in Darfur. The Sudanese government resumed bombing villages in Darfur last week, resulting in a number of civilian injuries and deaths. We condemn these attacks, which show little regard for human life.
	We supported the report by the Panel of Experts and its recommendations at the UN Sanctions Committee. It has not yet been transmitted to the UN Security Council, nor has its contents been made public. Our Ambassador to the UN, Sir Emyr Jones Parry, reports developments regularly to my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary. We continue to discuss the case for further sanctions in the UN.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment the Government have made of the steps taken bythe US Administration to block transfers by US commercial banks of oil payments to the government of Sudan; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: We are aware of the steps taken by the US Administration to block transfers by US commercial banks of oil payments to the government of Sudan. We are keeping the situation in Sudan under close review. If the Sudanese government does not co-operate with the international community, we are prepared to consider further sanctions. We are discussing the elements of a new UN Security Council Resolution with international partners, which would include further targeted sanctions against individuals engaged in violence or responsible for authorising it; an extension of the arms embargo to cover the whole of Sudan; and, measures to allow better monitoring of the illegal use of aircraft in Darfur.

Sudan: Sanctions

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether she has received evidence of breaches of the sanctions regime in the Darfur region of Sudan.

Ian McCartney: The Sudanese government resumed bombing villages in Darfur last week, resulting in a number of civilian injuries and deaths. We condemn these attacks, which show little regard for human life. We supported the report by the Panel of Experts and its recommendations at the UN Sanctions Committee. It has not yet been transmitted to the UN Security Council nor has its contents been made public.

Uganda: Arrests

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports she has received on the welfare of the recently arrested leaders of the Ugandan Opposition Beatrice Atim and Hussein Kyanjo; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: Ugandan opposition MPs Beatrice Atim and Hussein Kyanjo were arrested on 16 April, following demonstrations in Kampala on 12 April protesting about plans to give away parts of Mabira forest to the Sugar Corporation of Uganda Ltd. They have been charged with participating in a riot. They were granted bail and released on 18 April. Their case will be heard on 15 May. Our high commission in Kampala has been in contact with Hussein Kyanjoto check on the welfare of both MPs, which we understand is satisfactory.
	We condemn the violence that erupted on the streets of Kampala on 12 April resulting in the deaths of three people. We call on all sides to uphold full respect for human rights and to respect the rule of law.

Uganda: Human Rights

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she is taking to monitor the human rights situation in Kampala; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: I refer my hon. Friend to the written answer I gave to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson) on 26 April 2007,  Official Report, column 1260W.
	Our high commission in Kampala continues to closely follow the human rights situation in Kampala and in Uganda as a whole.
	Most recently the plans to give away parts of Mabira forest to private ownership have resulted in violent street protest and deaths in Kampala. In our contacts with the Ugandan government we will continue to stress the importance of the police acting responsibly and proportionately when policing demonstrations.

Uganda: Peace Negotiations

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps she is taking to monitor the newly established ceasefire agreement between the Lord's Resistance Army and the Ugandan government; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The Cessation of Hostilities Monitoring Team is responsible for monitoring the recently revised and extended Cessation of Hostilities Agreement between the Lord's Resistance Army and the Ugandan government. We welcome the decision by the African Union to deploy two additional monitors from each of the five official observer countries—Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa.

Community Development: Religion

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 30 April 2007
	 Two reports have so far been published. The first, the Survey of Parties in the Application Process, was published in May 2006. This survey evaluated the processes of application that occurred in the first round of the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund (FCCBF). The fund is administered by the Community Development Foundation (CDF) and the report is available on the CDF website at:
	http://www.cdf.org.uk.
	The second report on the first survey into the impact of the Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund was published in March 2007. This report is available on the CDF website at:
	http://www.cdf.org.uk

Home Information Packs

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the conclusions and recommendations of the Better Regulation Commission's report Energy Performance Certificates and Residential Property; and whether home information packs willbe introduced on 1 June;
	(2)  whether her Department is proceeding with the requirement that energy performance certificates be included in home information packs following the report by the Better Regulation Commission, Energy Performance Certificates and Residential Property, published on 26 February; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The Government have considered the views of the Better Regulation Commission (BRC) as well as the views of a wide range of stakeholders and organisations. We believe that home buyers need up to date energy information on their new home rather than energy information which is up to ten years out of date as the BRC have proposed.
	Home Information Packs including Energy Performance Certificates that are no more than three months old at the point of first marketing will be introduced on 1 June. The relevant regulations and supporting regulatory impact assessments were laid before the House on 29 March and came into force on 19 April.

Regeneration: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government howmuch departmental funding has been allocated to regeneration projects in Great Yarmouth in each year since 1997.

Phil Woolas: Information is only available on allocations made directly by Communities and Local Government and its predecessors to Great Yarmouth borough council since 2002. All of these allocations were made under the European Regional Development Fund Objective 2 programme. These do not correspond to payments in the years concerned.
	The amounts allocated were as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2002-03 0.2 
			 2003-04 3.0 
			 2004-05 1.4 
			 2005-06 1.6 
			 2006-07 1.5

Bankruptcy: Suffolk

David Ruffley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many people were declared bankrupt in Suffolk in each year since 1997.

Harriet Harman: A bankruptcy order is made on the petition of the debtor or one of his creditors when the court is satisfied that there is no prospect of the debt being paid. The following table shows the number of bankruptcy orders made at either Bury St. Edmunds or Ipswich county courts since 1998, the earliest year for which statistics are available. Bury St. Edmunds and Ipswich are the only two county courts in Suffolk which deal with insolvency matters.
	Bankruptcy petitions should be presented in the court that deals with the area where the debtor has lived or traded for the longest period in the previoussix months. However, the insolvency jurisdictions of particular county courts are not directly comparable with standard geographies such as counties or parliamentary constituencies. For these reasons, figures shown in the table will not be an exact measure of bankruptcies in Suffolk.
	
		
			  Number of bankruptcy orders made at Bury St. Edmunds or Ipswich county courts: 1998 to 2006 
			   Number of bankruptcy orders made in Bury St. Edmunds county court  Number of bankruptcy orders made in Ipswich county court  Total for Bury St. Edmonds and Ipswich county courts 
			 1998 87 191 278 
			 1999 80 212 292 
			 2000 81 191 272 
			 2001 92 179 271 
			 2002 128 186 314 
			 2003 122 274 396 
			 2004 142 289 431 
			 2005 217 337 554 
			 2006 274 513 787 
			  Source: Insolvency Service

Courts: Interpreters

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much was spent by the court system on interpreters in the latest period for which figures are available.

Harriet Harman: The information requested is not collected centrally (and could be provided only at disproportionate cost) for interpreters used in the Crown court and criminal hearings in the magistrates courts. In each of the last five years the costs of interpreters for civil and family hearings are as follows:
	
		
			   Cost (£) 
			 2002-03 181,000 
			 2003-04 204,000 
			 2004-05 250,000 
			 2005-06 494,000 
			 2006-07 (1)208,000 
			 (1) As at end September. 
		
	
	Changes to the financial systems used to pay interpreters have taken effect in the last couple of years and the figures quoted are therefore approximate. HMCS is currently undertaking some analysis of interpreters booked in the last year to try to identify trends in the increase of bookings and subsequent cost.

Departments: Buildings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what effect she expects the forthcoming reorganisation of her Department to have on the allocation and organisation of Government buildings; and if she will make a statement.

Harriet Harman: In accordance with normal practice for machinery of Government changes responsibility for those buildings wholly occupied by staff transferring to the Ministry of Justice will also be transferred. Arrangements for building(s) that will be shared between the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice will be managed in accordance with normal practice for jointly occupied buildings that form part of the Government's civil estate.

Departments: Buildings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what Government buildings the planned Ministry of Justice will share with the Home Office.

Harriet Harman: The Ministry of Justice will share2 Marsham street with the Home Office.

Departments: Buildings

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will make a statement on the status of the old Home Office building at50 Queen Anne's Gate.

Harriet Harman: The building is currently being refurbished by the landlord and will become the headquarters of the Ministry of Justice following refurbishment of the building.

Departments: Intimidation

David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many complaints of bullying have been investigated in her Department in the last 12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld.

Harriet Harman: During the last 12 months (for the period April 2006 to March 2007) the Departmentfor Constitutional Affairs has received 16 official complaints about bullying, of which two were upheld and two were partly upheld.

Electoral Systems

David Laws: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when the Government will publish its review of electoral systems currently inuse in the United Kingdom; and if she will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: The review is currently under way in the Department for Constitutional Affairs. The review will include information on the recent elections for the Northern Ireland Assembly in March 2007 and the up-coming elections for the National Assembly for Wales and the Scottish Parliament this week. It is anticipated that the review will be completed withinthe lifetime of this Parliament. Ministers will take decisions on any next steps, if necessary, after the review is completed.

Lord Chancellor's Dept: European Council

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many EU Council meetings the Lord Chancellor has attended since taking up her post; and who represents her if she is unable to attend.

Bridget Prentice: The Department for Constitutional Affairs is represented at EU Justice and HomeAffairs Council meetings by my right hon. Friendthe Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs, Baroness Ashton of Upholland as she is the Minister responsible for EU and international business. She attends all such Council meetings unless there is no business relevant to the Department. Baroness Ashton has attended 16 Council meetings since taking up her post.

Repossession Orders: Suffolk

David Ruffley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many court orders were issued for the repossession of homes in  (a) Bury St Edmunds constituency and  (b) Suffolk county council area in each year since 1997.

Harriet Harman: The following table shows the number of mortgage possession orders made at each of the Suffolk county courts (Bury St. Edmonds, Ipswich and Lowestoft) since 1997.
	The civil procedure rules provide that all claims for the repossession of land must be commenced in the district in which the land is situated. However, these county courts cover areas that are not necessarily consistent with other administrative or constituency boundaries, and therefore for instance repossessions at Bury St. Edmunds county court may relate to properties in other constituencies besides Bury St. Edmunds.
	These figures do not indicate how many houseshave been repossessed through the courts, since notall orders result in the properties actually being repossessed.
	
		
			  Number of mortgage( 1)  possession orders made at Bury St .  Edmunds county court and other Suffolk county courts, 1997-2006 
			   Possession Orders Made( 2) 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Bury St. Edmunds 56 68 72 37 35 18 48 47 99 117 
			 Ipswich 113 117 136 66 51 60 46 79 123 192 
			 Lowestoft 50 58 37 75 58 54 64 82 125 149 
			 Suffolk 219 243 245 178 144 132 158 208 347 458 
			 (1) Local authority and private (2) The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction.

Business: Taxation

Iain Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will introduce a unique business reference number for the purposes of allocation, collection, storage and verification of information relating to businesses for the purposes of the payment of taxation; and if he will  (a) bring forward proposals for and  (b) discuss with Cabinet colleagues the use of a single business reference number for firms accessing services delivered across all departments.

John Healey: HMRC is working towards the introduction of a customer index which could provide the basis for a unique business reference number,and which would enable HMRC to bring together a business's tax affairs. Following the recommendations of the Hampton report, the issues relating to services across a range of departments are under consideration by a cross-departmental group of officials.

Departments: Africa

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 14 March 2007,  Official Report, column 407W, on Departments: Africa, where  (a) he and  (b) his officials stayed in each country for each trip in January 2005.

John Healey: The Chancellor visited Africa in January 2005 in preparation for the G7 focus on development which, under the UK presidency, to a pledge to double aid to Africa by 2010. The delegation stayed in the following cities:
	Dar Es Salaam (Tanzania)
	Maputo (Mozambique)
	Johannesburg (RSA) and
	Cape Town (RSA).

Departments: Consultants

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many external consultants are employed by his Department;
	(2)  how much his Department spent on external consultants in each year since 1997.

John Healey: HM Treasury controls consultancy spending by cost, and not by headcount. Information on the total number of consultants engaged at any point in time is not held. The provisional outturn for the total spent on external consultants in 2006-07 by HM Treasury is £5.14 million. I refer to the answers given to the and the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, Central (Mr. Cousins) on 14 March 2006,  Official Report, column 2128W and the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 29 November 2006,  Official Report, column 721W, which detail consultancy costs for the financial years 2000-06. Figures for the years prior to 2000-01 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	In line with Office of Government Commerce guidance, in 2006-07 HM Treasury changed its definition of 'consultancy' to include advice on design and development of services, but exclude delivery of services on a longer term contracted out basis. Figures for prior years have not been restated.

Departments: Grievance Procedures

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many complaints of bullyinghave been investigated in his Department in the last12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld;
	(2)  how many grievance procedures have been initiated in his Department in the last 12 months;
	(3)  how many complaints of sexual harassmenthave been investigated in his Department in the last12 months; and how many complaints have been upheld.

John Healey: In the last 12 months fewer than five grievances have been raised and investigated. No complaints of bullying or of sexual harassment have been upheld. As the number of complaints of bullying and of sexual harassment was fewer than five, theexact number cannot be disclosed on grounds of confidentiality.

Departments: India

Oliver Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which Ministers in his Department have visited Indiain the last 12 months; on how many occasions each Minister visited India; and what the length was of each visit.

John Healey: The Chancellor of the Exchequer visited India in January 2007. All ministerial visits are conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code" and "Travel by Ministers". Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis, a list of overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500 and the total cost of all ministerial travel. Information for 2006-07 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year.

Departments: Paper

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of paper used  (a) for photocopying and  (b) in printed publications by his Department was from recycled sources in each of the last three years.

John Healey: For details of what percentage of paper used for photocopying and publications issued in the year 2004-05, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 21 October 2005,  Official Report, column 1306W. Our policy has not changed.
	From 2005 to present, the Treasury's PublishingUnit used recycled paper for all standard format publications and printed materials.

Duty Free Allowances

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress has been made by the European Commission on his proposal to increase the duty free allowance to £1,000; what recent representations he has received on this issue; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answerI gave on 16 April 2007,  Official Report, column 402W, to the hon. Member from Cannock Chase (Dr. Wright).
	HMT and HMRC Officials met stakeholders during negotiation of the new tax free allowance for travellers returning from outside the EU. We have also received a small number of letters regarding implementation of the higher allowance since it was agreed.

Group of Seven

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was spent on his Department's delegation to attend the last G7 Finance Ministers' meeting in Washington DC.

John Healey: All ministerial visits are conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code" and "Travelby Ministers". Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis, a list of overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500 and the total cost of all ministerial travel. Information for 2006-07 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year.

Managed Service Companies

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will place in the Library a copy of the responses to the consultation tackling managed service companies, December 2006.

John Healey: The Government have received a Freedom of Information request for the same information from the hon. Member.
	The Treasury is actively considering issues around the confidentiality of the information provided by the respondents to the consultation and will reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

Middle East

Mark Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when a Minister in his Department last visited  (a) Bahrain,  (b) Kuwait,  (c) Oman,  (d) Qatar,  (e) Saudi Arabia,  (f) the United Arab Emirates and  (g) Yemen on official business.

John Healey: All ministerial visits are conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code" and "Travelby Ministers". Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis, a list of overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500 and the total cost of all ministerial travel. Information for 2006-07 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year. I can confirm that the Chancellor attended the IMFC meetings in Dubai in September 2003 and passed through Dubai in March 2007. The Chancellor visited Riyadh in November 2005 and passed through Abu Dhabi en route. The Chancellor also passed through Kuwait in November 2006. The Economic Secretary visited the United Arab Emirates in November 2006 and Paymaster General visited the United Arab Emirates in January 2007.

Revenue and Customs: Great Yarmouth

Anthony D Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate has been made of the cost implications caused by rent charges of moving HM Revenue and Customs staff from Great Yarmouth to Norwich.

John Healey: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is undertaking a review of all its accommodation to bring it into line with business requirements, and expectsto make substantial savings on its accommodation running costs.
	The review of the cluster of HMRC offices comprising Great Yarmouth, Norwich and East Dereham is planned to take place later this year. No such estimate has yet been made. No decisions on the future of any of these offices will be made until the review process is completed.

VAT: Bingo

Nick Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how much was received in VAT on participation fees for games of bingo in each year since its introduction;
	(2)  what assessment has he made of the impacton bingo clubs of  (a) the imposition of VAT on participation fees,  (b) the changes introduced in the 2007 Gaming Act and  (c) the ban on smoking in public places.

John Healey: Total VAT receipts are published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report 2007. It is not possible to give the breakdown requested, or to assess the specific impact of the Budget changes on bingo clubs. However, the forecast total yield from the Budget changes to Gaming Duty was published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report.
	The effect of the smoking ban was incorporated into the forecast of total gambling receipts, which includes bingo duty receipts, and was published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report.

Youth for Europe

John Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which Youth for Europe projects have been financed by the EU in the UK in the last 12 months.

Bill Rammell: I have been asked to reply.
	The Youth for Europe projects within the UK receiving EU funding in the last 12 months are shown in alphabetic order in the following list.
	6VT Youth Cafe
	98th Merchiston Scout Group
	Aberdeen YMCA
	ACE Motivational Courses
	Acting Up Drama Group
	Acton Vale Somali Community
	Albert and Friends Instant Circus
	Alhijra Somali Community Assoc
	Antrim Youth Council
	Ashford YMCA
	Ballymena Youth Council
	Bathgate PHAB Club
	BID Services with Deaf People
	Birches Community Association
	Birmingham Youth Service
	Boys' and Girls' Clubs of Wales
	Bradford Youth Service
	Brownlow Resource Centre
	Burwell Church Youth Group
	CAFK
	Calling the Shots Films Ltd, Peasedown
	Cardiff Young Peoples Forum
	Cardiff Youth Service
	Castle Hill Reformed Church
	Centre 65, Chipping Campden
	Challenge and Adventure
	Chethams School of Music, Friday Club, Upton
	Christ Church Youth Group
	Colchester YMCA Foyer—Young Deaf Club
	Community Youth Group, Penarth
	Connexions West Yorkshire
	Crossley House, Manchester
	CVS, Preston
	Cymdeithas Tai Hafan
	Dacorum Borough Council
	Dales United Youth FC
	Department of Defence Dependents' Schools
	Devon Federation of YFCs
	Devon Youth Service: South Hams
	Dialogue Youth
	Docklands Outreach
	Doncaster Youth Jazz Assoc
	Down Youth Office
	East Sussex County Council
	Edinburgh Rudolf Steiner School
	EISA London
	Emerging Artistic Talent Southampton Ltd
	Everything's Possible
	Foyle Youth Bank
	Gallowgate and Calton Children's Project Possibilities
	Gladiator Explorer Scouts
	Glasgow City Council
	Grampus Heritage and Training
	Grey Lodge Settlement
	Hampshire County Youth Service
	Hanley Castle High School St. Basils
	Hartlepool Youth Service
	Helensburgh District Explorer Scouts
	Hendon Young Peoples Project,
	Hinckley Youth Council
	Hostelling International NI (Valve Project)
	International Relations, Durham
	Inverclyde Volunteering for Youths
	Isaac Newton Arts Trust
	Junction Swanley
	Kent Community Housing Trust
	Kent Youth & Community
	Kettlethorpe Youth Centre. Wakefield
	Leicester Stars FC
	Lewisham Young Mayor's Advisory Group
	Linlithgow Twinning Exchange
	Mersea Outdoors
	Middlesbrough Youth Service
	Mourne Presbyterian Youth Fellowship
	Muirhouse Youth Development Group
	Neath Port Talbot Youth Service
	Norfolk International Projects
	North Ely Youth and Community Centre
	North Lanarkshire Youth Council
	Oldham Theatre Workshop
	Patrician Youth Centre
	Peterlee Youth Centre
	Powys CC Youth Services
	Purley Crusaders
	Rathcoole/Sunlea Area Youth Project
	REACH Across
	Revelation Youth Group
	Royal Borough Kensington and Chelsea
	Rural Futures
	Rushmoor Borough Council
	Saffron Walden High School
	Scottish Deaf Association
	Sevenoaks and Tunbridge Wells Team
	South Cheltenham Detached Youth Work Team
	South Shropshire Youth Forum
	Spelthorne Youth Council
	Spirit of Enniskillen Trust
	St.. Oswalds West End Centre
	St.. Teresa's Youth Centre
	Staffordshire Youth Service
	Streetsoul
	Sutton Coldfield YMCA
	Taghnevan Youth Club
	Teesside Colleges, Stockton
	Thamesmead Youth Centre
	The Astor Youth Group
	The Box Youth Project,
	The Henry Box School
	The Lift MYA, Liverpool
	The Sweatbox
	Theatr Fforwm Cymru
	Torbay Youth Service
	Trafford Youth Service, Manchester
	UNA, Cardiff
	Wakefield Young People's Service
	Wales Youth Action
	Wellhouse Community Trust, Hazelwood
	West Bowling People's Project
	West Dunbartonshire Council
	West Lothian/Hochsauerlandkeis Exchange
	WIDEA
	Young Farmers Clubs of Ulster
	Young Xplorers, Newcastle
	Youth Centre
	Youth Learning Service

Children in Care

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children are in local authority care in England, broken down by ethnic background.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 23 April 2007
	The number of children who are in local authority carein England broken down by ethnic background at31 March 2006 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Children looked after at 3 1  M arch 2006 by ethnicity( 1,)( )( 2) , England 
			  Ethnic origin  All children looked after at 31 March 2006  (Number) 
			  All children( 1,)( )( 2) 60,300 
			   
			  White 47,200 
			 White British 45,100 
			 White Irish 450 
			 Any other White background 1,600 
			   
			  Mixed 5,000 
			 White and Black Caribbean 1,900 
			 White and Black African 420 
			 White and Asian 730 
			 Any other mixed background 2,000 
			   
			  Asian or Asian British 2,000 
			 Indian 300 
			 Pakistani 610 
			 Bangladeshi 270 
			 Any other Asian background 870 
			   
			  Black or Black British 4,900 
			 Caribbean 1,600 
			 African 2,400 
			 Any other Black background 920 
			   
			  Other ethnic groups 1,200 
			 Chinese 120 
			 Any other ethnic group 1,100 
			 (1) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements. (2) To preserve the confidentiality of each individual child, figures at national level have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 and to the nearest 10 otherwise.  Source: SSDA903 return

Classroom Assistants: Pay and Manpower

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how much was paid in salaries to  (a) learning support assistants and  (b) teaching assistants in (i) pupil referral units, (ii) special needs units attached to mainstream schools, (iii) resourced provision, units and special classes in maintained mainstream schools and (iv) maintained special schools in each year between 1997 and 2007;
	(2)  how many teaching assistants were employed in  (a) pupil referral units,  (b) special needs units attached to mainstream schools,  (c) resourced provision, units and special classes in maintained mainstream schools and  (d) maintained special schools in each year between 1997 and 2007;
	(3)  how many learning support assistants there were in  (a) pupil referral units,  (b) special needs units attached to mainstream schools,  (c) resourced provision, units and special classes in maintained mainstream schools and  (d) maintained special schools in each of the years between 1997 and 2007.

Jim Knight: Information on the salaries paid to learning support assistants, teaching assistants and other school support staff is not collected centrally.
	"The Deployment and Impact of Support Staff in Schools" is an ongoing research project commissioned by the Department. It started in 2004 and will run to 2009. One strand of the project is a survey conducted in 2004 with a sample of support staff. The sample was not representative but the results were weighted to account for any bias in the sample. Amongst other things, the questionnaire asked about their pay. Support staff in special schools reported a mean hourly wage of £9.06. This compared with £7.90 and £9.55 for support staff in primary and secondary schools respectively. Teaching assistant equivalent staff across the maintained sector reported a mean hourly wageof £8.66. "Teaching Assistant Equivalent" includes teaching assistants, learning support assistants for SEN pupils, nursery nurses and therapists. The full wave one report can be found at: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfiles/RR776.pdf and the next interim report is due during summer 2007.
	Learning support assistants are collected within the overall number of teaching assistants but are not available as a separate category. Numbers of special needs support staff are however available separately. In addition numbers cannot be provided separately for units and classes within mainstream schools.
	The following table provides the number of full-time equivalent teaching assistants employed in pupil referral units, maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools and maintained special schools in England, January 1997 to 2006 the latest information available. The number of those which are special needs support staff are also provided.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent teaching assistants( 1)  employed in pupil referral units( 1) , maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools and maintained special schools in England, January 1997 to 2006 
			  Thousand 
			   Pupil referral units  Maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools  Maintained special schools 
			   Teaching assistants  Of which: Special needs support staff( 1)  Teaching assistants  Of which: Special needs support staff  Teaching assistants  Of which: Special needs support staff( 1) 
			 1997 — 260 49,690 24,250 10,620 — 
			 1998 — 370 53,800 25,680 11,370 — 
			 1999 — 430 57,240 29,110 11,930 — 
			 2000 — 540 65,830 31,890 12,650 — 
			 2001 — 620 80,970 37,040 13,400 — 
			 2002(2) 890 310 91,310 39,310 13,160 7,000 
			 2003 1,330 490 104,540 39,930 15,320 5,880 
			 2004 1,830 490 114,500 40,620 15,730 5,300 
			 2005 2,070 530 127,880 41,020 17,050 6,440 
			 2006 1,970 430 132,530 40,980 18,610 6,130 
			 (1 )Whilst the overall collection of support staff data for schools was successful, it is possible that some discontinuity in the time series data has resulted from underlying change in data collection. (2) When PLASC was introduced in 2002 data collection forms were standardised throughout all sectors.  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: Annual School Census

Community Champions Fund

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which organisations have received funding from the Community Champions Fund since its inception; what plans he has for the future budget of the Community Champions Fund in forthcoming financial years; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: Community Champions funding supports individuals rather than organisations. Individuals can apply for up to £2,000 to run innovative projects in their community. The total number of awards in 2005-06 was 1,769; the average award was £1,250. Funding is currently available until the end of March 2008.
	The purpose of the comprehensive spending review settlement for this Department is to deliver key priorities for children, young people and learnersover the period 2008-11. Decisions to be taken overthe coming months will permit more detailed announcements to be made in due course about the allocation of resources, but it is unlikely that extension of the Community Champions Fund will be given priority over programmes that more directly impact on outcomes for children and young people.

Day Care: North East Region

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people in  (a) the North East and  (b) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland are eligible for financial support for child care.

Beverley Hughes: All three and four-year-olds can benefit from 12.5 hours a week free early years provision, irrespective of the employment status of their parents. This will rise to 15 hours a week by 2010.
	The Office for National Statistics shows the North East region having a population of 52,100(1) three and four-year-olds, and the 2006 Early Years and Schools Censuses show the number of part time early education places funded by the free entitlement for three and four-year-olds in the North East region as 50,900(2). The number of part time early education places fundedby the free entitlement for three and four year oldsin Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland parliamentary constituency
	area was 1,900(1).
	A pilot scheme for disadvantaged two-year-olds offering 7.5 hours per week free early years provision is also available in Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Durham and South Tyneside until March 2008. This will benefit a total of 1,200 children in the North East.
	The child care element of working tax credit (WTC) is available for meeting up to 80 per cent. of the cost of registered or approved childcare to a maximum cost of £175 a week for one child and £300 a week for two children or more. The average number of families in each constituency benefiting from the child care element of working tax credit in 2004-05 is available in the HMRC statistical publication "Child and Working Tax Credit Statistics. Finalised Awards 2004-05. Geographical analyses", which is available on the HMRC website at: www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm. Estimates for 2005-06 are due to be published in May.
	In addition to the child care element of working tax credits, child care used by parents can be subsidised in a variety of ways including local authority subsidies, Jobcentre Plus new deals, care to learn, learner support funds and NHS child care allowances. Wider data on eligibility for financial support for child care are not however available centrally.
	(1) As at December 2005. ONS population estimates are aggregated to age groupings of at least five years. Figures based on a single year of age at the sub-national level are therefore of limited reliability.
	(2) The number of children benefiting from some form of free early education can exceed the number of free part-time early education places taken up by children as a place may be taken up by more than one child.

Diplomas for England

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which schools in the London borough of Havering have been selected as pilot schools for the introduction of the new diplomas for England.

Jim Knight: On 28 March I announced the first 145 consortia (groups of schools, colleges and training providers) across 97 local authorities that have been given approval to offer one or more of the first five 14 to 19 diplomas from September 2008. We have always been clear that the bar was set high so that although there were a lot of assessments submitted with good elements, only those consortia who demonstrated they were able to provide high quality delivery across all the criteria from September 2008 were included in thefirst group. Consortia from the London borough of Havering were not approved for delivery from September 2008, but we have provided a support package to help them prepare for a future gateway.

Educational Psychology

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the role of educational psychologists in the Every Child Matters scheme;
	(2)  how many educational psychologists qualified in each year since 1997;
	(3)  what the reasons were for reductions in funding for educational psychologists training; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what steps he is taking to ensure that enough educational psychologists are being trained to meet demand;
	(5)  what progress has been made in retrieving funding provided to local councils that was allocated to the training of educational psychologists; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: Educational psychologists (EPs) play an important role in assessing special educational needs and in helping to formulate support arrangements for children with a wide range of needs, including those with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties. The value of their contribution was confirmed by a recent independent study, conducted by the School of Education, University of Manchester, published by the DfES on 31 August 2006. A copy of the report, "A Review of the Functions and Contribution of Educational Psychologists in England and Wales in light of "Every Child Matters: Changes for Children", Research Report No 792", was placed in the House of Commons Library, and can also be accessed via the Department's research website:
	www.dfes.gov.uk/research
	Information on the number of those who qualify annually as EPs is not collected centrally.
	With regard to EP entry training arrangements, and associated funding, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 25 April 2007,  Official Report, columns 1181-82W.

Further Education: Finance

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what funding was available for further education colleges to support  (a) NVQ Level 2,  (b) NVQ Level 3 and  (c) NVQ Level 4 in upholstery and soft furnishing in each year between 1996 and 2006;
	(2)  what funding was provided to further education colleges to enable students to undertake qualifications in upholstery and soft furnishing in each year between 1996 and 2006; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: We have increased public investment in further education by 48 per cent. in real terms between 1997-98 and 2005-06. Adult education funding will increase by 7 per cent. between 2005-06 and 2007-08, with funding for young people increasing by 13 per cent. over the same period. This means that overall in 2007-08, through the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) we will invest £11.2 billion, an increase of£716 million compared with 2006-07.
	Information on course subjects that learners are undertaking is only available from the LSC at the broad sector level. This does not allow for discrete subjects such as upholstery and soft furnishings to be identified, therefore it is not possible to provide details on the level of funding for these courses.

Further Education: Finance

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the availability of traditional upholstery skills courses in further education colleges in each year between 1996 and 2006.

Bill Rammell: Colleges have benefited from our48 per cent. real terms increase in further education funding between 1997-98 and 2005-06. We have realigned funding to support our priorities and as announced on 15 March we have met our interim adult Level 2 target with a million more adults in the workforce with essential employability skills. Also more than 1.6 million learners have achieved Skills for Life qualifications in literacy, language and numeracy.
	The structure and delivery of courses is the responsibility of the individual providers which means that we do not hold information on this centrally. It is therefore not possible to report on the number of traditional upholstery skills courses delivered by colleges in any given year.

GCE A Level: Standards

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students entering English universities for the first time in 2006 didnot have two grade E A levels or better A level qualifications.

Bill Rammell: In 2005/06, there were 2,620 entrants (2 per cent.) with one or more A levels who had fewer than 80 tariff points from these qualifications. The figures relate to 18-year-old English domiciled entrants to full time first degree courses at English higher education institutions who have obtained one or more A levels. A grade E at A level is worth 40 tariff points.
	Tariff points are not to be the only factor universities consider in assessing potential to succeed in HE. In 2004, Professor Steven Schwartz conducted an independent review of admissions to HE. The report makes clear that while prior educational attainment data (e.g. 'A' levels) remains the best indicator of success at undergraduate level, equal exams results may not represent equal potential to succeed in HE and that universities can usefully consider other factors. The Schwartz Group recommended an 'holistic assessment' of applicants which included consideration of contextual factors, given the variation of learners' opportunities and circumstances.

Graduates: Qualifications

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what proportion of university graduates qualified in  (a) physics,  (b) engineering and  (c) mathematics in each of the last 15 years.

Bill Rammell: The latest figures are shown in the tables. Data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency are only available from 1994/95 onwards; figures for the previous years are taken published sources which do not separately identify Physics and Mathematics.
	
		
			  Number and proportion of students obtaining first degree qualifications by subject area ,  UK higher and further education institutions , y ears( 1 ) 1991 to 1993 
			   Subject 
			   Physical Sciences( 2)  Engineering and Technology  Mathematical and Computing Sciences( 3)  All Subjects 
			  Number 
			 1991 9,400 17,400 8,700 161,500 
			 1992 10,200 18,800 9,800 178,700 
			 1993 10,800 19,400 10,900 189,200 
			  
			  Proportion ( P ercentage) 
			 1991 6 11 5 100 
			 1992 6 11 5 100 
			 1993 6 10 6 100 
			 (1) Figures are given on a calendar year basis and not an academic year; therefore they are not comparable to the figures in the table. (2) Including Physics. (3) Including Mathematics.  Notes:  The figures are compiled from data collected by the Universities Statistical Record (USR), covering students at former—UFC funded universities, and the education departments of the four home countries, covering students at non-university HE and FE institutions.  Source:  Education Statistics for the United Kingdom 1993,1994 and 1995 editions. 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of students obtaining first degree qualifications by subject area( 1) ,  UK  h igher  e ducation  i nstitutions , a cademic years 1994/95 to 2005/06 
			   Subject 
			  Academic year  Physical Sciences  Of which: Physics  Engineering and Technology  Mathematical Sciences  Of which: Mathematics  All Subjects 
			  Number   
			 1994/95 13,440 2,480 22,085 4,070 3,435 237,795 
			 1995/96 13,785 2,000 23,320 4,070 3,385 251,250 
			 1996/97 14,070 2,440 23,015 3,705 3,115 255,260 
			 1997/98 13,295 2,320 22,575 3,940 3,370 258,755 
			 1998/99 13,055 2,320 22,010 4,250 3,640 263,670 
			 1999/2000 13,185 2,300 20,550 4,095 3,545 265,265 
			 2000/01 (2) 13,205 2,450 20,490 4,295 3,720 272,665 
			 2001/02 12,415 2,210 20,285 4,125 3,725 274,440 
			 2002/03 12,475 2,205 19,455 5,100 4,390 282,380 
			 2003/04 11,995 2,180 19,780 5,395 4,655 292,090 
			 2004/05 12,530 2,235 19,575 5,270 4,575 306,365 
			 2005/06 12,900 2,365 19,765 5,500 4,815 315,985 
			
			  Proportions ( P ercentage)   
			 1994/95 6 1 9 2 1 100 
			 1995/96 5 1 9 2 1 100 
			 1996/97 6 1 9 1 1 100 
			 1997/98 5 1 9 2 1 100 
			 1998/99 5 1 8 2 1 100 
			 1999/2000 5 1 8 2 1 100 
			 2000/01 (2) 5 1 8 2 1 100 
			 2001/02 5 1 7 2 1 100 
			 2002/03 4 1 7 2 2 100 
			 2003/04 4 1 7 2 2 100 
			 2004/05 4 1 6 2 1 100 
			 2005/06 4 1 6 2 2 100 
			 (1) In 2002/03 the coding frame and the method of recording subject of study was changed. The Joint Academic Classification Scheme (JACS) was introduced which although similar to the previous coding frame, is not directly comparable. Additionally, figures are on a full person equivalent basis whereby a student is apportioned between each of their subjects of study. (2) From 2000/01 students qualifying from a dormant mode of study are included in the figures; they are excluded in all previous years. Incoming exchange students are excluded from the figures from 2000/01 onwards; they were included in all previous years.  Source:  Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student record 
		
	
	The latest figures from UCAS for students applying to enter full-time undergraduate courses in 2007show that applications for these subjects have risen significantly: Physics is up by 12 per cent., Mathematics by 10 per cent. and most of the engineering subjects are also up including chemical engineering (by 16 per cent.), Civil engineering (by 13 per cent.) and Mechanical engineering (by 8 per cent.).

Pupils: Age

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the rules regarding school starting age for children;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to ensure that parents are informed that it is not compulsory for a child to attend school until the term after his or her fifth birthday.

Jim Knight: Children become of compulsory school age at the start of the school term after they reach the age of five. Admission authorities may allow children to start school before they reach compulsory school age but, if they do so, parents offered a place at the school may ask that the date that their child is admitted is deferred until later in the school year or until he or she reaches compulsory school age in that school year. Where parents choose this option the place offered to them must be kept open and cannot be offered to another child. The school admissions code requires that this is made clear in published admission arrangements
	Local authorities have a duty to provide advice and assistance to all parents in their area when they are choosing schools for their children and are required to publish a composite prospectus for parents each year with information about all the admission arrangements of all schools in their area. This includes admission to reception classes and the right parents have to request that admission is deferred.

Special Educational Needs: Autism

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what statutory provisions are in place to ensure that children with autistic spectrum disorder have access to a teacher with a formal qualification in teaching children with autistic spectrum disorder;
	(2)  how many teachers in  (a) mainstream maintained schools,  (b) maintained special schools and  (c) non-maintained special schools have a formal qualification in teaching children with autistic spectrum disorder;
	(3)  what funding the Government provided to assist teachers in gaining higher qualifications to teach children with autistic spectrum disorder in each year from 1997 to 2006.

Parmjit Dhanda: There is no statutory requirement for children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs) to have access to a teacher with a formal qualification in teaching children with ASDs.
	The non-statutory ASDs Good Practice Guidance (DfES/DH, 2002) advised that "all those who plan or provide for children with an ASD should have some knowledge and understanding of autism". The Department does not keep records centrally of how many teachers have a formal qualification in teaching children with ASDs.
	Between 1997-98 and 2003-04 the value of the special educational needs (SEN) grant under the standards fund totalled £364.4 million (this figure includes Government grant and local authority matched funding). Training was one of the main sub-heads under the fund. It was for local authorities to decide how to use the funding. The fund guidancein 1999-2000, 2000-01 and 2002-03 specifically highlighted training in ASDs as one of the areas local authorities may have wished to support.
	Since 2004-05 £81 million for SEN has been included in the baseline for the school development grant, which all maintained schools receive, and this increased by4 per cent. per year in 2004-05 and 2005-06. The school development grant can be used for in-service training. It is a matter for individual teachers and their schools to determine their own training and development needs, including training in ASDs. Local authorities may retain a proportion of this grant, under certain circumstances, to provide specific training in SEN.
	In 2002-03 £1 million was made available for higher education institutions to bid for projects to increase training and development opportunities for teachers, learning support assistants and school governors-under the SEN training and development fund. Three grants were awarded for autism-related projects: £100,000 to Sheffield Hallam university (training initiatives aimed at raising the achievement of children with ASDs); £95,150 to the university of Birmingham (development of an ICT-supported module at masters level); and £50,000 to the university of Greenwich (collaborative project between the university and an ASD outreach service).

Students: Finance

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how long transfers of student loan repayments from the Treasury's consolidated account remain with his Department before being transferred to the Student Loans Company.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 20 April 2007
	Student loans repayments are not transferred to the Student Loans Company. They reduce the net assets, representing outstanding loans, on the Departmentfor Education and Skills balance sheet. It is only information about repayments made by individual borrowers that is passed to the company to allow it to issue annual statements. Once that information is received by the company, repayments are attributed to each month of the tax year in which they were made by the borrower and monthly interest is calculated accordingly. This ensures that even if there is a delay in repayment details reaching the company, the borrower does not pay any additional interest.

Students: Finance

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much of the student loan repayment transfers received by his Department from the Treasury's consolidated account in each of the last four quarters was  (a) repayment of the principal and  (b) interest accrued.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 20 April 2007
	The Student Loans Company updates accounts with repayment details as they are received from HM Revenue and Customs. Repayments are taken from the total balance owed by the borrower. The Student Loans Company does not break down either outstanding amounts or repayments into principal and interest components.

Universities: Northern Cyprus

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the application by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus for recognition of its six universities under the Council of Europe's Bologna process; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what representations his Department has madeto the Council of Europe in respect of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus's application for recognition of its six universities under the Council of Europe's Bologna process;
	(3)  what representations he has received on the financial implications for the Turkish-Cypriot universities of their continued non-membership of the Bologna process.

Bill Rammell: The Government's assessment, which is generally shared by other countries in the Bologna Process, is that the application in question, along with those being considered from Israel, Kosovo and the Kyrgyz Republic, does not meet the criteria for membership of the Process. This is because those criteria require member countries to have ratified the European Cultural Convention. The final decision on this issue will be taken when Ministers meet at the Bologna Process Ministerial Conference in May. The Bologna Process is not a Council of Europe initiative but an independent intergovernmental agreement.The Government have not therefore made any representations to the Council of Europe on this matter. My officials have received representations from Professor Tahir Celik, chair of the Higher Education Board in the 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus', concerning his assessment of the potential economic impact of non-membership on universities in the 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus'.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the timetable is for the review of the  (a) alcohol and  (b) drugs strategy; and what consultation is taking place in relation to each such strategy.

Vernon Coaker: I have been asked to reply.
	The Home Office is leading the cross-Government effort on the development of a new Drug Strategy. The existing, and successful, 10-year strategy runs until March 2008. A consultation document is planned to be issued alongside details of the consultation process in May/June 2007. The intention is to consult interested groups and individuals, including service providers and those affected by drugs—users, families and local communities. Subject to cross-Government agreement, the new strategy is likely to be published in late 2007.
	The Home Office and Department of Health are jointly leading a review of the Alcohol Harm Strategy for England 2004 and the development of a new Alcohol Strategy with support from the Department for Education and Skills. A series of detailed discussions have been held with key stakeholders from the health, police, young people's sectors and the alcohol industry to inform the development of the new Alcohol Strategy. The new strategy is due to be launched in summer 2007. A formal consultation is not planned prior to launch, but consultation is likely to be required on implementation of key aspects of the strategy.

Blood Transfusions

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps have been taken to ensure that blood transfusions are avoided wherever possible.

Caroline Flint: The Department has taken a number of measures to ensure the most appropriate use of blood, and to encourage the national health service to use less blood. Some of the key measures are set out as follows.
	In 1998, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) launched the Better Blood Transfusion initiative to promote and encouraged better/appropriate use of blood and alternatives to transfusion.
	In July 2002, Health Service Circular (HSC) 2002/009 "Better Blood Transfusion—Appropriate Use of Blood" was issued. This has been placed in the Library and is available at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Lettersandcirculars/Healthservicecirculars/DH_4004264
	This circular asked NHS trusts and primary care trusts to review and explore the use of effective alternatives to donor blood and also using the patients own blood.
	The CMO's National Blood Transfusion Committee was established in 2002 to advise hospitals andthe National Blood Service on best practice and performance monitoring, improving the safety and appropriateness of blood transfusion practice, listening to and informing patient concerns and promoting high quality and consistent transfusion practice.
	The Department and the United Kingdom blood services produced a toolkit for practitioners on better blood transfusion, safe practice, appropriate use, education and training, monitoring and traceability. The toolkit, which is available at www.transfusionguidelines.org.uk/, aims to help NHS trusts to make the most appropriate use of blood and its alternatives where possible.
	A seminar was held on 16 March 2007 to discuss progress and identify ways to maintain or improve the safe and appropriate use of blood over the next three to five years. A HSC will be issued to the NHS on the outcomes.

Blood Transfusions

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what alternatives are made available to people who choose not to receive blood transfusions on religious grounds.

Caroline Flint: Patients have the right to refuse a blood transfusion and this will be respected. However, before refusing a blood transfusion, patients needto fully understand the consequences of doingso. Information is available at www.transfusionguidelines.org.uk/ on alternatives to blood transfusion.

Blood: Contamination

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the number of haemophiliacs who were infected with HIV and hepatitis C through blood transfusions when they were children, but are unable to receive hardship funds through the Macfarlane Trust and the Skipton fund; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: The Macfarlane Trust was set up in 1988 to provide financial help to patients with haemophilia infected with the HIV virus and their families.
	The Skipton fund was set up in 2004 to administer an Ex-gratia Payment scheme for patients infected with hepatitis C following national health service treatment with blood or blood products. Haemophilia patients who were infected with hepatitis C are eligible for a payment under the Skipton fund.
	Anyone eligible for payments, should have received them. The Department is examining two cases where individuals claim that they have not received payments they may be entitled to.

Cholesterol

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many diagnoses of high cholesterol there were in England in each year since 1997-98; and how many such diagnoses were made in those under the age of18 years.

Caroline Flint: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  All diagnosis count of finished consultant episodes and patients for high cholesterol—national health service hospitals, England 1997-98 to 2005-06 
			   1997-98  1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01 
			  Age group  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts 
			 Aged under 18 167 121 200 167 244 198 298 209 
			 Aged 18 and above 53,537 39,373 72,748 53,420 94,622 67,977 132,880 91,718 
			 Age not known 226 153 35 32 42 40 257 133 
			 Total 53,930 39,647 72,983 53,619 94,907 68,215 133,436 92,060 
		
	
	
		
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			  Age group  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts 
			 Aged under 18 344 240 336 270 393 318 558 426 
			 Aged 18 and above 162,655 111,682 200,733 134,702 225,665 155,308 288,424 195,375 
			 Age not known 202 200 141 139 87 87 70 70 
			 Total 163,201 112,122 201,211 135,111 226,145 155,713 289,052 195,871 
		
	
	
		
			   2005-06 
			  Age group  Finished consultant episodes  Patient counts 
			 Aged under 18 656 507 
			 Aged 18 and above 363,156 241,424 
			 Age not known 58 58 
			 Total 363,870 241,989

CJD

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans she has to test blood donors for vCJD;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the annual cost of testing blood donors for vCJD.

Caroline Flint: There are no current suitable tests for testing blood donation for variant Creutzfeld-Jakob disease (vCJD), and therefore no current plans to test blood donors. However we are aware of a number of companies developing vCJD blood tests and, if such tests become available and after consulting with the appropriate advisory bodies, we will consider their utility in testing blood donations with the National Blood Service.
	There are no reliable current estimates of the cost of testing blood donations for vCJD, which could only be accurately calculated once a suitable test for testing donations is available, and the cost of such a test known.

Co-Proxamol

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the reasons were for the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency's decision to implement a phased withdrawal of co-proxamol; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  when co-proxamol will be withdrawn from general use in the relief of pain for sufferers of  (a) osteoarthritis and  (b) fibromyalgia; and what alternative drugs will be able to be prescribed.;
	(3)  what  (a) discussions she has had with and  (b) representations she has received from (i) ArthritisCare, (ii) the Arthritis Research Campaign, (iii) the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society and (iv) the Fibromyalgia Association on the phased withdrawal of co-proxamol.

Caroline Flint: There has been growing concern about the safety of co-proxamol prompted by United Kingdom research showing that co-proxamol alone accounts for almost one-fifth of drug related suicides and is second only to tricyclic antidepressants asan agent of fatal drug overdose. Furthermore, co-proxamol is involved in 300-400 self-poisoning deaths each year.
	Many deaths involve people taking co-proxamol that had not been prescribed to them. Co-proxamol is potentially very toxic, and toxic overdose can occur with only a few tablets more than the recommended daily dose. Unlike paracetamol there is very limited opportunity for effective treatment of co-proxamol poisoning and sadly victims often die before they reach hospital.
	As a result of these concerns, in 2004 the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) conducted a rigorous review of all the available evidence regarding the risks and benefits of co-proxamol. The review highlighted that there is a lack of evidence that co-proxamol is any more effective than full dose paracetamol, either for short term use or for chronic conditions. During the review a public call for evidence on the risks and benefits of co- proxamol was also conducted. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) wrote to a large number of organisations representing healthcare professionals, patient groups and other stakeholders. The information gathered provided no new objective evidence concerning the risk and benefits of co-proxamol.
	The CSM noted that previously strengthened warnings to doctors and patients on the hazards of co-proxamol had proved ineffective. After considering all the available evidence the CSM determined that the risks of co-proxamol outweigh the benefits of allowing the medicine to remain on the market and advised that co-proxamol should be withdrawn over a period of up to 36 months.
	The marketing authorisations for co-proxamol will be withdrawn at the end of 2007. Some manufacturers have already withdrawn co-proxamol and a few will phase the withdrawal until the end of 2007. This extended withdrawal period allows long-term co-proxamol users an opportunity to move to suitable alternatives. There are a number of such alternatives and the MHRA has issued CSM pain management guidance to help doctors find the best options for individual patients. This is available on the MHRA's website at www.mhra.gov.uk.
	The MHRA recognises that there is a small group of patients who are likely to find it very difficult to change from co-proxamol or where there is an identified clinical need; when alternatives appear not to be effective or suitable. For these patients, continued provision of co-proxamol through normal prescribing may continue until the cancellation of the licences at the end of 2007. After this time there will be provision for the supply of unlicensed co-proxamol, on the responsibility of the prescriber.
	The MHRA has met with Arthritis Care, the British Society for Rheumatology, the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society and the British Pain Society to discuss the withdrawal of co- proxamol. As a result of these discussions, an article on the risk and benefit of co-proxamol was agreed for publication in the MHRA's/CSM's drug safety bulletin, 'Current Problems in Pharmacovigilance'. Arthritis Care, the British Pain Society and the British Society for Rheumatology also responded to the public call for evidence. As is usual for MHRA public consultations, the responses to consultation are available on request.
	The outcome of regulatory action to withdraw co-proxamol is being carefully monitored. It is encouraging to see that the latest figures on suicide show that the national suicide rate continued to fall in 2005 and stood at its lowest ever level. Furthermorea recent report from the national programme on substance abuse deaths based at St George's Hospital in London, shows that the number deaths involving co-proxamol had declined since the CSM took action.

Dental Services

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 7 March 2007,  Official Report, column 2098W, on dental services, how many dentists were operating on open NHS contracts in Somerset in each of the last 10 years, broken down by primary care trust.

Rosie Winterton: Data on the number of NHS dentists in Somerset from 31 March 1997 to 31 March 2006 are available in Annex E of the NHS Dental Activity and Workforce Report England: 31 March 2006, which is available in the Library.
	The report, published by The Information Centre for health and social care, is also available at:
	http://www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dwfactivity.
	Information on the dental work force under the new dental contractual arrangements, introduced on 1 April 2006, is published at every quarter by The Information Centre for health and social care. These data are not comparable with the historical data in the link above. The latest information available is as at 31 December 2006 by the new primary care trusts (PCT) boundaries (PCT boundaries as at 1 October 2006) published on23 March 2007—NHS Dental Statistics for England Quarter 3: 31 December 2006 and is available in the Library.
	The report, published by The Information Centre for health and social care, is also available at:
	http://www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dental06q3.

Departments: Research

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  to what extent preferences shown by members of the public influence the research priorities set by her Department's research and development division;
	(2)  what  (a) process and  (b) decision-making criteria will be used to set research funding priorities for her Department's research and development division in each of the next three years; and what the timetable is for the setting of those priorities in each year;
	(3)  what formula is used to set funding allocations for different medical research specialties for her Department's research and development.

Caroline Flint: The Department funds National Health Service Research and Development through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). Information on the priority setting processes for each NIHR programme is available through the NIHR website at www.nihr.ac.uk. The Government's strategy for health research 'Best Research for Best Health' was subject to open public consultation.
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and the United Kingdom National Screening Committee also act as customers for departmental research, and advisory bodies, research funders groups and topic review groups play a role in identifying research gaps and requirements.
	The Department's Policy Research Programme (PRP) commissions research to support the development, implementation and evaluation of policy in public health, health services and adult social care. Priorities for the PRP are determined by the Department's strategic objectives and public service agreements, and through discussion between officials and with Ministers.
	The NIHR national advisory group INVOLVE promotes and supports active public involvement in all aspects of NHS, public health and social care research. Its web site (www.invo.org.uk) and its publications give both researchers and the public information and advice on the range of opportunities for such involvement that exist.
	More specifically, any individual or organisation can submit a suggestion for consideration by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment (HTA) programme. An electronic form is available on the HTA website at www.hta.ac.uk/suggest.

HIV Infection: Greater London

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were diagnosed with HIV in each London borough in each of the last five years.

Caroline Flint: The HIV caseload for each London borough from 2001 to 2005 is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number of diagnosed HIV-infected individuals resident in London local authorities, 2001-05 
			   Survey year 
			  Local authority  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			 Barking and Dagenham 140 191 277 322 344 
			 Barnet 335 398 442 447 501 
			 Bexley 86 108 125 157 176 
			 Brent 478 554 619 653 720 
			 Bromley 126 162 175 215 245 
			 Camden 884 990 1,072 1,103 1,101 
			 City of London 17 25 30 32 41 
			 Croydon 500 629 635 712 782 
			 Ealing 408 437 487 525 586 
			 Enfield 270 334 417 465 539 
			 Greenwich 318 422 506 589 647 
			 Hackney 615 699 800 871 989 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 733 795 824 865 916 
			 Haringey 680 751 840 913 986 
			 Harrow 145 160 199 207 223 
			 Havering 38 60 85 89 106 
			 Hillingdon 153 182 226 270 302 
			 Hounslow 282 329 420 478 516 
			 Islington 704 796 954 966 1,025 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 759 791 815 865 916 
			 Kingston upon Thames 129 119 145 155 182 
			 Lambeth 1,394 1,596 1,802 1,957 2,154 
			 Lewisham 611 692 815 872 968 
			 Merton 229 257 286 334 376 
			 Newham 757 871 1,012 1,072 1,132 
			 Redbridge 198 248 303 355 377 
			 Richmond upon Thames 146 157 167 160 185 
			 Southwark 1,033 1,190 1,350 1,510 1,699 
			 Sutton 94 115 143 168 186 
			 Tower Hamlets 442 550 637 683 755 
			 Waltham Forest 372 445 524 552 610 
			 Wandsworth 643 682 738 792 855 
			 Westminster 777 862 953 1,033 1,074 
			 London: LA not known 9 15 1 0 34 
			  Source: Survey of Prevalent HIV Infections Diagnosed (SOPHID), 2001-05. SOPHID collects residential and epidemiological information on individuals accessing HIV care within a calendar year in England, Wales or Northern Ireland. All figures exclude infants born to HIV-infected women in the survey year but who were uninfected or whose infection status was indeterminate. At least 98 per cent. of indeterminate infants will subsequently be confirmed as uninfected.

Homeopathy

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether a patient wishing to choose NHS homeopathy and other forms of complementary medicine will be able to access such services from one of the four NHS homeopathic hospitals; and how many other hospitals plan to offer such services.

Caroline Flint: The homeopathic hospitals in the United Kingdom fall under the jurisdiction of the national health service in the area in which they are based. Any decisions on the services any of these hospitals provide are the responsibility of those NHS healthcare organisations.
	The Government consider that decision-making on individual clinical interventions, whether conventional, or complementary/alternative treatments, have to be a matter for local NHS service providers and practitioners as they are best placed to know their community's needs. In making such decisions, they have to take into account evidence for the safety, clinical and cost-effectiveness of any treatments, the availability of suitably qualified practitioners, and the needs of the individual patient. Clinical responsibility rests with the NHS professional who makes the decision to refer and who must therefore be able to justify any treatment they recommend. If they are unconvinced about the suitability of a particular treatment, they cannot be made to refer.

Modernising Medical Careers

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her oral statement on 16 April 2007,  Official Report, column 41, on modernising medical careers, how many members of the independent review chaired by Professor John Tooke were members of the review group which dealt with this year's recruitment process.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 30 April 2007
	Professor Sir John Tooke has not yet confirmed the membership of his review group, although this isbeing considered as a matter of urgency so that the independent review can commence its business as soon as possible.

National Midwifery Council: Finance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of Statefor Health how much funding was provided by her Department to support the establishment of the National Midwifery Council.

Ivan Lewis: According to our records, the Department granted funding between April 2002 and April 2004 totalling £3,656,382.81 to support the establishment of the Nursing and Midwifery Council. Figures prior to April 2002 are currently unavailable without extensive research.

National Midwifery Council: Finance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of Statefor Health what annual funding is provided by her Department to the National Midwifery Council.

Ivan Lewis: According to our records no funding has been paid to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) by the Department since April 2004. The NMC is an autonomous organisation funded by registration fees and does not receive funding from the Department.

NHS Treatment Centres: Private Sector

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what her new policy is on providing an independent sector treatment centre for South East Essex; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  how much has been spent to date on securing an independent sector treatment centre for South East Essex.

Andy Burnham: The Department is working with the NHS East of England SHA to deliver independent sector treatment centre (ISTC) services in Essex. It is currently anticipated that there will be three ISTCs in the region located in Braintree, Basildon and Southend.
	The aims of the Department's ISTC programme are to:
	help provide capacity to deliver swift access to treatment for national health service patients.
	support the implementation of patient choice.
	stimulate innovative models of service delivery and drive up productivity, and;
	introduce contestability between providers of healthcare services for NHS patients.
	The ISTC programme comprises central resources which work across all schemes and the programme in general. These resources are not disaggregated by individual scheme.
	In wave 1 of the ISTC programme ex-gratia payments were made in relation to the South Essex scheme. The amounts paid are commercially sensitive.

NHS: ICT

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of general practitioner referrals to first consultant-led out-patient services were made through the choose and book system by1 April.

Andy Burnham: During March 2007 a total of 283,149 general practitioner referrals to first consultant-led out-patient services were made through the choose and book system. This equates to 38 per cent. of first out-patient referrals nationally, and represents a range of between 8 per cent. and 91 per cent. for different primary care trusts.

NHS: ICT

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 13 March 2007,  Official Report, column 318W, on patient choice schemes, what the total costs of  (a) preparing,  (b) implementing and  (c) rolling out the Choose and Book system have been since the system was first proposed.

Andy Burnham: I refer the hon. Member to thereply given on 13 March 2007,  Official Report, column 317W.

Obesity: Children

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards meeting the public services agreement target of July 2004 that by 2010 the increase in obesity among children aged under 11 years will be halted.

Caroline Flint: Despite the very challenging nature of the public service agreement (PSA) target we have made good progress. For example:
	OFCOM has announced restrictions to ensure no high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) products are broadcast advertised to pre-school children; programmes specifically made for children; or programmes of particular appeal to children up to 16 years old.
	The 2005-06 school sport survey found that overall 80 per cent. of pupils participate in at least two hours of high quality physical education and school sport a week, meeting our PSA target early.
	New, tougher nutritional standards for school food have been announced and those for school lunches have been in place since September 2006.
	We launched the Top Tips for Top Mums campaign, in March 2007, to help parents tackle the four key barriers to children eating fruit and vegetables (cost, fussy eaters, limited time/cooking skills, and a lack of structured meal occasions). This was the first in a series of campaigns using social marketing approaches.
	Obviously tackling obesity is a complex issue, requiring action on a number of fronts and working closely with families and individuals to change behaviour. It is extremely positive that internationally our approach is regarded as good practice, informing for example, the World Health Organisation Europe Charter on Counteracting Obesity published in November last year.

Patients: Per Capita Costs

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent per head by the NHS on care and treatment for  (a) all people,  (b) children,  (c) young people,  (d) those aged 65 years and over and  (e) those aged 80 years and over in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Andy Burnham: The following table shows hospital and community health services (HCHS) expenditure per head of population in 2003-04. The table shows the available age group breakdown, which differ to those requested.
	
		
			  Age group  Expenditure per head (£) 
			 All births 2,742 
			 Age 0-4 1,046 
			 Age 5-15 210 
			 Age 16-44 459 
			 Age 45-64 586 
			 Age 65-74 1,416 
			 Age 75-84 2,371 
			 Age 85+ 4,077 
			 Average 765 
			  Note: 2003-04 is the latest year this data is available.  Source:  HCHS Programme Budget 2003-04 and ONS mid-year population estimates 2003.

Smoking: Railway Stations

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she has taken with  (a) train, bus and coach operators and  (b) Network Rail to inform passengers of the introduction of a ban on smoking at railway and other stations.

Caroline Flint: The smokefree provisions within the Health Act 2006 will apply to virtually all enclosed and substantially enclosed public places and workplaces,as well as to public transport vehicles. Many formsof public transport are already smokefree. London Underground ended smoking in all its trains and stations 20 years ago.
	The Department has met Network Rail and organisations representing all train operators, bus and coach operators in an effort to support the transport industry in their preparations for the implementation of smokefree legislation on 1 July 2007.
	All smokefree premises and vehicles will be required under smokefree legislation to display no-smoking signs that meet specified requirements. Signs will allow clear communication with smokers so they are clear where smoking is not permitted under the new law. Signs will also make it clear to non-smokers where they have a right to expect a smokefree environment, as well as helping to demonstrate that people who manage premises are taking reasonable steps to prevent smoking from taking place. The Government has drafted smokefree regulations to ensure that much of the pre-existing no-smoking signage displayed in public transport vehicles will meet requirements.

Smoking: Social Clubs

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she has taken to ensure working men's clubs are aware of the forthcoming ban on smoking.

Caroline Flint: The Department is providing a range of information and support to businesses to help them be ready for the implementation of smokefree legislation on 1 July 2007.
	On 23 March 2007, the Department published the guide "Everything you need to prepare for the new smokefree law on 1 July 2007" with comprehensive information on smokefree legislation for businesses. The guide will be included within a pack that was posted to all employing and trading businesses in England, including working men's clubs, during April and is also available to download on the Smokefree England website at:
	www.smokefreeengland.co.uk.
	The guidance packs that businesses have received also include no-smoking signs and other support materials.
	A Smokefree England ministerial reference group comprised of key stakeholders was created last year to facilitate dialogue between business groups (including representatives from the hospitality industry), local government and the Department, and has met regularly. The Committee of Registered Clubs' Associations (CORCA), representing working men's clubs, is a member of the reference group.
	Through the Smokefree England campaign, the Department been working with CORCA to help communicate how the new law will affect members clubs, and has met with CORCA representatives regularly. The Department will continue to provide CORCA and working men's clubs with assistanceand advice to support their preparations for the implementation of smokefree legislation.
	Businesses can also contact their local council for information and advice on getting ready for the implementation of smokefree legislation.

Surgery: Waiting Lists

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Hull and East Yorkshire NHS trust patients had their operation cancelled up to 14 days before the operation in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and how many such operations were for  (a) knee surgery,  (b) hip replacements,  (c) ophthalmology surgery and  (d) urology surgery.

Andy Burnham: Data collected centrally covers cancellations for non-clinical reasons on the day the patient is due to arrive or after arrival in hospital, and for non-clinical reasons on the day of surgery. The data is available by provider but not by speciality. There were 744 such cancellations in the period January to December 2006 at Hull and East Yorkshire national health service trust. This equates to 1.1 per cent. of elective admissions.